It has been months since I last posted. In those months my life has been absolutely consumed with fighting a permit my neighbor applied for to spread toxic sewage sludge (biosolids)  as a free fertilizer on his hay fields right across the street from my 5 children. Biosolids is a PR name for the residual sludges from the waste water treatment process. It is a blend of Human, Hospital, Pharmaceautical, Chemical, Morgue and Industrial waste. It is minimally treated to reduce indicator pathogens (ecoli salmonella) and then shipped to our farmland to grow silage and crops on. Some of the pathogens not killed by this treatment are hepatitis, norwalk virus and Methylicillin Resistant Staph Aureus (several people living near sites have died from this). That is only a small list and doesnt even include the tens of thousands of chemical compounds that can be in the sludge.

The citizens of our community gathered to form Citizens Against Toxic Sludge. We became a non profit group, hired a public interest attorney to draft an ordinance to stop the spreading of sludge in our community and petitioned our Board of Supervisors to represent us and pass the ordinance. I became the relucant leader of this group of thousands and spent much of my time becoming a real world expert on sludge. Hundreds or hours of research and countless media interviews later I am dying al ittle each day.

The industry and the structure of law that allows a corporation to come in and poison us is dark. Darker than you could ever imagine. The fight has stolen my joy in a way I never thought possible. Becoming a public figure made me a target. There were threats and horrible things said about me. It is amazing how much money these corporations will spend on PR hacks to attack the people who oppose them.  I am now referred to as an activist (YUCK) Whenever I can I simply reply that I am not an activist just a mother trying to protect her children.

I dont feel like the same person that I was when I started. I am harder now. Not as trusting, not as happy and feeling a bit dead inside. The worst part is that our board rejected us. Hundreds of people attended the public hearing. We presented 90 exhibits into the record to support our position and to assist in the defense of the ordinance if it were challenged. We provided 2 free attorneys to defend the ordinance if need be and offered fundraising to cover any other costs. Faced with a clear majority (90 % plus) of the community they voted not to institute our ordinance. Now we are faced with the huge task of replacing the board through a constitutional referrendum. It iwll be at least 6 months and probably more like 2 years before we will be finished. In the mean time there is nothing to stop the 5 landowners in our county who want sludge to start poisoning their neighbors and YOUR food supply. The cattle graze on those fields, produce is grown on them, it ends up in our food chain.

There is not much more I can say, I would like to ask for prayer though.