Century Applying For Permit To Spread Sewage Sludge On Farm

October 17, 2012

The Town of Century is applying for a new Florida Department of Environmental Protection permit that will allow sewage sludge to be spread on a local farm.

The town will pay Fabre Engineering up to $7,000 to obtain the permit and maintain the necessary records.

Ordinarily, the town’s sewage sludge is “pressed” and transferred to a facility in Crestview. But when the sludge press is inoperative, it sometimes becomes “urgently” necessary, according to Mayor Freddie McCall, to spread the sludge on a local farmer’s hayfield.

“It’s a safety valve for us when the sludge press is down,” McCall said of the occasional use of the farm. He said that when the farm is used, a town vehicle spreads a mixture over a hayfield that is about 98 percent water and 2 percent sludge.

Comments

18 Responses to “Century Applying For Permit To Spread Sewage Sludge On Farm”

  1. David Huie Green on October 21st, 2012 3:25 pm

    It is possible the treated wastewatet is killing off the fish, but then how do we explain their survival all those decades the raw sewage was just dumped?

  2. bill on October 18th, 2012 10:57 am

    They do this in South Carolina on a farm next to my dad’s house and it stinks for about a week.

  3. ROBERT on October 18th, 2012 10:20 am

    I FISH THE ESCAMBIA RIVER FOR ALL MY LIFE. FOR THE PAST YEAR’S I HAVE SEEN .THE FISH THAT I WOULD CATUCH ARE NOT THERE. ENNEY MORE I FISH FROM THE AL. LINE TO THE OPENING OF THE BAY THE FISH OR JUST NOT THERE .THE FISH I HAVE SEEN HAVE SORE’S ON THEM AND NOT FIT TO EAT .AND ARE VERY SMALL .THE BIG BREAM NOT THERE ENNEY MORE .I THANK THAT THIS SEWAGE WATER THAT BEING RELEASE AT FISHEF LANDING IS KILLING THE WATER WAY .AND THE LIFE IN IT.

  4. Joe T Godwin on October 18th, 2012 9:04 am

    Anybody at anytime can find a survey or study to support their belief.The fact is no matter how much you poke or squeeze it sewage still stinks………….

  5. Jane on October 18th, 2012 4:57 am

    I am concerned regarding the run off into rivers from streams, rain, etc. from this practice. I have seen what has happened in other parts of the US when they did this. It is one of the things that resulted in having to destroy tons of food in California that had become contaminated from the run off from a close by field that was sprayed with this. Let’s do a little research and ask the people who live near this how they feel about it.

  6. The Dude on October 17th, 2012 10:35 pm

    “It sells for 12 bucks per bag under the name “Milorganite”.

    I bought that stuff and applied it to my front lawn–once. It smelled worse than a failing septic tank for over two weeks–and worse when it rained. Human poop smells awful–no way around it.

    Just my personal experience.

  7. nem on October 17th, 2012 8:23 pm

    I have experienced this first hand. If things haven’t changed rest assured it smells as bad or worse than the old sewage plant on Main St ever did on a bad day or foggy or humid day. Does anyone remember a few years back when they put the mounds on Pine Forest Rd. accross from Five Flags race track. It stunk. Well they spread this sludge mess on a field next to us on Jack’s Branch Rd. South of my place in Barrineau Park. It smelled just like a sewage plant (raw smell) . They were made to scrape it up and lime the field. Now consider this was just up from the river (Perdido). Whether it’s enviromentally approved or not or contaminated or not what about the ecoli that we have had in lettuce, green onions and any number or vegetables we have had people get sick from or die from. I personally did not come to live buy property and pay taxes etc. to smell and deal with the equivalence of a sceptic tank or outdoor toilet (Oversized) right next door.

  8. Dennis on October 17th, 2012 3:51 pm

    NOWHERE IN THE ARTICLE DOES IT SAY IT IS RAW SEWAGE. IT IS TREATED AND IS PERFECTLY SAFE AND ENVIRMENTALLY POSITIVE!

  9. Duke of Wawbeek on October 17th, 2012 12:32 pm

    A widespread practice that is perfectly safe.

  10. Betty on October 17th, 2012 12:08 pm

    If this is being done—–i just don’t want to know. How very sickening to think that our farm land is being spread with raw sewage—-the litter problem is bad——our food is being contaminated with pesticides and herbicides. The doctors are injecting unsuspecting souls with killer bacteria because someone, somewhere did not test a batch (or many batches) of medicine. ——-and this is the United States where the Perdido Key Mouse has more protection than the citizens. What a mess we are in!

  11. elmerpsuggins34 on October 17th, 2012 10:28 am

    Ok let me see if I understand this story these people want to spread raw sewage on a hay field if cows eat this hay and we eat the cow chances are we are eating raw sewage . Can you spell E coli and that,s just one of the thousnds of bacteria nay hundreds of thousands of bacteria found in raw sewage. Correct if me if am wrong but bacteria can be absorbed systemically through out the plant not to mention the fact that it will be on the outside of the plant also I don,t kno what the half life of bacteria is But I don,t like this plan of there,s If anyone kno,s different please post it on this site .And that,s all I have to say about that

  12. Sandra on October 17th, 2012 10:04 am

    The City of Milwaukie incinerates theirs and then bags it as fertilizer. It sells for 12 bucks per bag under the name “Milorganite”. Century should consider doing the same.

  13. ngd on October 17th, 2012 10:03 am

    My question is, why do they raise sand about ceptic tanks and then spread the stuff on the ground…doesn’t make sense to me…Of course I’m just a dumb country hick…

  14. just wondering on October 17th, 2012 9:13 am

    The sludge is now again being put on a field on Wawbeek Rd. There is a sign at the field that states that it is being down there. If a sign and a permit is required to have this stuff spread , than how are they getting away with doing it now without a permit? It makes me wonder how safe is the run off? Because as Oversight says if it’s cheaper for the county to dump this on fields then to send it to Crestview we all know where this stuff will land. With the cost of fertilize going up everyday more of the farmers will be using the sludge and I can’t blame them for trying to keep their farms running. My question is how does this effect peoples drinking water because most people out where this stuff will eventually
    be spread ,if things keep going, have water wells not city water. Just wondering

  15. Frank on October 17th, 2012 8:41 am

    This is totaly safe, I worked for the University of Florida that did this 35 years ago from Pensacola @ the facility in Jay/Allentown there is no stinch more than anything else spread to fertalize. This has been done for years…all over the world…get educated on issues…

  16. Alabama on October 17th, 2012 7:17 am

    The smell is terrible and when it rains you can still smell it. For ya I hope they say no.

  17. Oversight on October 17th, 2012 5:31 am

    And just where is this farm and who should be concerned when there’s run-off? From the article, it reads like Century has already done this before without a permit. And no kidding, the public has both a need to know and a right to know where Century is spreading its sewage sludge. By the way with some data, how often does this “sludge press” become inoperable? It’ll probably beak down more often now because it’ll be cheaper to spread the sludge around locally than sending it to Crestview.

  18. well on October 17th, 2012 5:19 am

    Used to be a field on Wawbeek road.