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closely with the farmers and may be able to help with solving some of the problems and bring them to the attention of OWASA. Mr. Billingsley stated that OWASA had worked very closely with the former Director but had not contacted Bill Mainous. Commissioner Marshall indicated that Mr. Mainous would be a very good contact with the farmers and their immediate problems as they come up. Commissioner Marshall also asked if any attempt had been made to contact the 82 people who had signed the petition to notify them of the Public Hearing and Billingsley noted that it would have been a good idea but that no attempt was made. Commissioner Carey asked about a policy for the application of sludge in the County and Billingsley indicated that no policy had been needed. Chris Walker noted that he attended several meetings with regard to this concern and no response from OWASA had been received. Raymond Kirby expressed concern about bacteria in his neighbor's pond and noted the pond had to be drained for the contamination to be cleared up. Billingsley noted that on January 23, 1985, Mr. Hartley received a letter from Mr. Atkins about the lack of signs, runoff of the sludge, monitoring wells not used, etc. and was informed that investigation revealed there was no improper application of the sludge and no contamination caused by runoff. Hartley responded that the sites were investigated during a dry period instead of during the period when the problem would be expected to happen. One of the basic problems has been the lack of communication and lack of response to the concerns of the citizens. J. T. Thompson emphasized that sludge was applied right after a rain. He attempted to call Ron Williams, but Williams did not respond. The problem seems to be before or after a rain. Joe Smith asked Mr. Billingsley about the benefit to the farmer and ask for the number of farmers who benefit. Billingsley indicated that seven have participated in the program. Smith questioned the benefits with only seven in the program. Ron Williams summarized the different ways for disposal of sludge. Because of the risk of groundwater contamination the sludge is concentrated in one area. The best way for disposing of sludge is to apply the sludge to the land at a rate that will keep the nutrients in a cycle so the farmer will benefit. He explained the process of extracting the sludge from the wastewater and the treatment of the sludge. The application rate is controled by an annual soil test taken on each site. It is applied to the pasture land or to the soil if the land is used for growing crops. Carolyn McGaskil, Division of Environmental Management, advised OWASA that they will need to remove the phosphorus from the sludge and that there are no regulations for the sludge sites. Periodically samples are taken from the monitoring wells. Some of the concerns are true. However, signs have been erected, the monitoring wells will be used, and the buffer area must be maintained. She explained the purpose of the monitoring wells. Public concerns and complaints are welcomed and will be answered. She outlined the procedures if the permit is violated. The site can be revoked but the permit cannot be taken away. Commissioner Marshall expressed hope that the problems can be worked out to everyones satisfaction. She asked that the manager and attorney look into the situation and provide direction to the Board. F. ITEMS FOR DECISION