Letter: Williamstown Dealing in Toxic Sludge to Save Money? Madness
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To the Editor:
While Williamstown builds a $20 million fire station, Bob Menicocci and the Finance Committee expect us to be up in arms about $500,000 to deal with a very real environmental problem in a responsible fashion — toxic sludge.
Waste water treatment in Williamstown yields effluent (discharged to the Hoosic River where there is a PFAS advisory on fish from the Mass Department of Health) and sludge — a concentrated byproduct. The proposal before us is to start taking toxic sludge from other towns because the town wants to lower costs and we have the capacity.
But what is the trade-off? The trade-off is increased liability for Williamstown who would become a producer/source of toxic waste spread on New York agricultural fields (that is, our food and water) and environmental contamination. As the country scrambles to find ways to filter PFAS from our drinking water, given that it causes cancer, Williamstown wants to sign on to spreading more of the chemical around? Madness. It's a terrible idea. We should tell Casella "No" at the Select Board meeting April 14, Town Hall, 31 North St. at 7 p.m.
We can't on the one hand say: PFAS "forever chemicals" cause intractable harm to humans, ecosystems and animals, but then also say, let's put them into our food at varying levels depending on any given state legislature. Maine and Connecticut have banned the land application of PFAS chemicals; Vermont is extremely stringent; they have the right idea! Because various New England farms have been contaminated, Casella seeks to send the product to New York, essentially taking advantage of regulatory lag time. Lawmakers haven't banned it there yet. We should not be a partner in this kind of short-term exploitation.
Williamstown has it's own PFAS problem. The Hoosac Water Quality District has not explained the planned testing protocol for incoming sludge: What is the type and frequency of testing? PFAS bioaccumulates in the environment and our bloodstream. Yet, they talk of expansion. With a PFAS advisory on the Hoosic, apparently our method is leading to contamination, which doesn't make me want to say: Let's scale up! Harmful heavy metals also exist in the sludge and effluent. Human waste is a bad fertilizer in general. Too much junkfood and pharmaceuticals. Now, Williamstown wants to go into the toxic sludge business to save $500,000? Madness.
Todd Fiorentino
Williamstown, Mass.
