Appeals court rules for DOE in county biosolids suit

The Washington Court of Appeals on November 4 ruled against the Wahkiakum County ordinance banning the application of biosolids.

In 2011, Wahkiakum County adopted an ordinance banning the application of Class B biosolids, septage or sewage sludge to any land within the county. The ordinance allows application of Class A biosolids, which have a higher standard of treatment than Class B biosolids or septage.

According to a Department of Ecology news release, the decision, that state law cannot be overridden by a local ordinance, was upheld by the court when it ruled that Wahkiakum County’s ordinance was unconstitutional and conflicts with state law.

Ecology has maintained that biosolids are the product of waste water treatment systems that can be beneficially recycled. They contain valuable nutrients and organic matter that improve soil condition and promote plant growth, the department says.

The county adopted the ordinance in response to Westend residents’ concerns that Class B biosolids applied to a Grays River Valley farm could adversely impact fish and wildlife and, in the event of a severe flood infiltrate and contaminate a broken water main.

In response, Ecology filed a complaint against the county alleging that the ordinance violated the state constitution. The case went to court, and Cowlitz County Superior Court had previously ruled in favor of Wahkiakum County.

The county argued that it was not contradicting state law but rather that it was setting a standard which the law allowed.

Ecology argued that the county’s ordinance crippled the state statutory scheme, which, the department maintained, gives biosolids regulatory authority to the department.

“Responsibly using biosolids as a soil nutrient was mandated by the Legislature in 1992 when it unanimously passed a law directing Ecology to establish a program to manage the solids resulting from municipal sewage,” said Laurie Davies, manager of Ecology’s Waste 2 Resources Program.

The Town of Cathlamet town council voted 5-0 last May to file a friend of the court brief in Ecology’s suit over regulation of the application of biosolids.

The town’s new waste water treatment plant was designed to produce Class B biosolids, which are not as processed as Class A biosolids. Council members said they had planned to apply them to the town’s timberlands on Bradley Mountain, but under the county ordinance, the town will have to contract with a hauler who will dispose of them elsewhere at a higher cost.

County officials have indicated they will appeal the decision to the state supreme court.