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13 <br />W- F GUl1~~V1~~-S~C7N f~"C~~THE.~IVVI~?C~~M~1~1"T' ,: , ^ {~ {'~ :: <br />t. <br />MEMORANDUM <br />To: Board of County Commissioners <br />From: Commission for the Environment <br />Date: April 20, 2009 <br />Subject: Land Application of Biosolids in Orange County <br />The Commission for the Environment (CFE) has been discussing the issue of <br />biosolids application in Orange County and has identified areas of concern that <br />pertain to the CFE's charge of advising the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) <br />on matters related to the protection of the county's natural environment. <br />The CFE recommends that the BOCC receive this information and consider <br />appointing amulti-disciplinary task force to examine environmental and public <br />health issues and develop recommendations for the County to include in the <br />proposed Memorandum of Agreement with the NC Division of Water Quality. <br />The CFE is interested in having representation on this proposed task force. <br />This recommendation follows our April 2008 memorandum to the BOCC regarding <br />issues related to biosolids application, and the renewal of the City of Burlington's <br />biosolids application permit. A copy of that memo and the Board's subsequent <br />response to the NC Division of Water Quality (DWQ) are attached for your <br />reference. As a point of further reference, a May 28 letter from DWQ notes that a <br />memorandum of agreement between DWQ and Orange County is being considered <br />at this time. <br />Biosolids application continues to be widespread in the County, with over 3,000 <br />acres of permitted sites receiving biosolids from five municipal wastewater treatment <br />facilities: Durham, OWASA, Burlington, Mebane, and Hillsborough (a map of the <br />site receiving biosolids in Orange County is attached). Preliminary data compiled by <br />the UNC School of Health indicate that permitted land in the County is receiving <br />upwards of 17 million gallons of biosolids per year, which equals an average rate of <br />5,000 gallons per acre per year. At least one site is located within the critical area of <br />the Cane Creek protected watershed. <br />The CFE believes that additional information and data is needed to better <br />understand the potential affects of biosolids on the environment and on human <br />health. <br />The following are some of the issues that are of particular interest to the CFE and <br />may be relevant for further consideration: <br />- The application of biosolids on farmland in critical watershed areas. <br />