Sludge Fertilizer Corporation Abandons Texas Town in Wake of “Forever Chemicals” Crisis

The city of Fort Worth, Texas, has ended its contract with Cinagro, a Goldman Sachs-backed provider of fertilizers made from sewage sludge over concerns that the “eternal chemicals” of fertilizer are polluting local farmland and groundwater.

This month, Fort Worth also sued several manufacturers of chemicals, also known as palfluoroalkyl substances or PFAs, alleging they contaminated the city’s water supply.

The New York Times reported last year about a group of ranchers in Johnson County, just south of Fort Worth.

The sewage sludge fertilizer comes from Chinagro. Cinagro had a contract to take the sewage from the Fort Worth sewage treatment plant, further treat it and distribute it to farmers as fertilizer. Johnson County then launched a criminal investigation into Cinagro.

An ever-growing number of research has shown that sewage sludge, which is often used as fertilizer, can be contaminated with PFA. PFA is a synthetic chemical widely used in everyday items such as non-stick cooking utensils and dirt-resistant carpets.

Chemicals Links to various diseases Do not break in the environment, including increased risk of cancer. Contaminated sludge can contaminate soil, groundwater, crops and livestock when used as fertilizer in farmland.

In January, the Environmental Protection Agency warned for the first time that PFA, which is present in sewage fertilizers, also known as biosolids, could pose a human health risk. Maine, the only state to systematically begin testing PFA farmlands, has detected chemicals on dozens of dairy farms. However, it has rarely been tested on farms in other states.

Fort Worth City Council I voted unanimously To cancel the 10-year contract signed with Synagro in 2019, the contract ended April 1, with city water utility staff working on a new contract for the biosolid business, according to council records.

The city did not cite any reason to terminate the contract. However, in a recent lawsuit filed by Fort Worth against the manufacturer of PFAS chemicals, the city cited the presence of PFA in the city’s drinking water sources and wastewater infrastructure.

Synagro said in a statement that the company and the city of Fort Worth “have mutually agreed to resolve all claims following ongoing differences in opinion regarding contract requirements.” He said the termination has nothing to do with PFA. The city’s water department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Synagro, owned by Goldman Sachs Asset Management, challenges claims that its biosolids contaminated Texas farmland. This month, the company filed an motion to dismiss the claims of a Johnson County rancher. It cited an independent study that concluded that sludge fertilizer was not the source of the high PFA levels found in rancher livestock.

Synagro also said it tested much lower levels of PFA in the soil than ranchers argue. The company has not published the investigation.

The attorney representing the ranch could not be contacted for comment. The rancher stops sending their cows to the market while continuing to care for them, saying they are facing economic ruin.

Dana Ames, the environmental investigator who leads the investigation into Chinagro in Johnson County, said the “intensive investigation” discovered high levels of PFA on the rancher’s property. “We eliminated all other sources of contamination, and we also tested the biosolids and discovered contamination,” she said.

At a council meeting, Luan Langley, a resident of Grandview, Texas, blamed the standing city while Cinagro “dumped biosolids on unsuspecting landowners and farmers.” She said cancelling the contract is not enough. “How does that help families whose lives have been destroyed?” she said.