Toxic Sludge Products

Toxic Sludge Products are actually composted of sewage sludge. To dispose of sewage sludge produced by wastewater treatment plants, industry and the EPA have renamed them biosolids and dubbed them as 'green' examples of recycling, beneficial reuse, and organic fertilizer and compost products. In many cases, the sewage sludge is then packaged as compost or fertilizer and sold to unsuspecting home gardeners (how many people know what the word biosolids means??).

You Are Putting Hidden Toxic Sludge Onto Your Vegetable Garden
No law or regulation requires that sewage sludge be labeled in any way to warn you that the "organic compost" or "fertilizer you are buying contains it.  So the sewage sludge industry, through its front groups like US Composting Council, is conducting the largest toxic scam in America, fooling millions of people into putting this hazardous waste product onto home and school gardens.

Case Study: Kellogg Sewage Sludge Products
Kellogg Garden Products considers itself a green and socially responsible company. It is partnered with Hollywood's Environmental Media Association, giving them support and products which provide photo ops for Kellogg's products such as Amend. However, what Kellogg and the bag of Amend won't tell you is that the "compost" in it is sewage sludge! (Nitrohumus, Topper, Amend, and Gromulch) contain "composted" sewage sludge obtained from the Inland Empire Regional Composting Authority (IERCA).

(IERCA) is a sewage sludge treatment plant in Rancho Cucagmonga, California. It was created and is operated by the Inland Empire Utilities Agency and the Sanitation Districts of Los Angeles County. The IERCA treats sewage sludge from municipal waste treatment plants in San Bernardino County in California. It is the "nation's largest indoor composting facility," according to the IERCA website. The IERCA creates and markets SoilPro "biosolids compost," which is treated sewage sludge, and markets it to retail stores, backyard gardeners and other consumers. SoilPro is sold to southern California gardeners and is in Kellogg Garden Products like Amend, Topper, Gromulch, and Nitrohumus.

Sludge Products Sold by Corporations
Products by A1 Organics (Colorado & Nevada):
 * BioComp

Products by Agresource, Inc.:
 * Agresoil (made from the sludge of several New England cities)

Products by EKO Compost, Inc. (Missoula, Maui, Lewiston plant on Idaho-Wahington border):
 * EKO Compost

Products by Engel & Gray, Inc. (Santa Maria, CA):
 * Harvest Blend Compost

Products by Kellogg Garden Products (Los Angeles, CA):
 * Amend
 * Gromulch
 * Nitrohumus
 * Topper

Products by Mannco Fertilizer Company (Conway, AR):
 * Top Choice Organic

Products by New England Organics:
 * Earthlife

Products by N-Viro International Corporation:
 * BioBlend
 * BioDry
 * N-Viro Soil

Products by Synagro:
 * All-Gro
 * Granulite

Products by WeCare Organics LLC (NY):
 * WeCare Compost
 * EarthBlends Plus™ Pellets
 * EarthBlends Advantage
 * WeCare RoofMix

Municipal Sludge Products

 * Bay State Fertilizer   (Boston, MA)
 * Chesapeake Sunshine
 * ComPro (Washington, D.C.)
 * Dillo Dirt (Austin, TX)
 * Glacier Gold (Olney, MT)
 * GroCo (Seattle, WA)
 * Hou-Actinite (Houston, TX)
 * Landscapers' Advantage   (Camden, NJ)
 * Meadow Life (New Jersey)
 * MetroGro (Madison, WI)
 * Milorganite (Milwaukee, WI)
 * Nutri-Green (Virginia Beach, VA)
 * ORGRO (Baltimore, MD, marketed by Veolia Water North America)
 * OCEANGRO (NJ)
 * SilviGrow (Seattle, WA)
 * SkyRocket (Comox, BC, Canada)
 * SoilPro, Los Angeles, CA
 * SoundGRO (Pierce County, WA)
 * TAGRO (Tacoma, WA)
 * TOPGRO (Los Angeles, CA)
 * Tuscarora Landscaper's Choice (Leesburg, VA)
 * UAJA ComposT (Central Pennsylvania)
 * Nutri-Blend, Inc. (Richmond, VA)

Additionally, some cities give away their sewage sludge without branding it. For example, in Salida, CO, the Salida Wastewater Treatment Plant produces and gives away class A biosolids to the public. The City & County of Honolulu Department of Environmental Services also offers sludge compost.

Discontinued Sludge Products
The following products were produced in the past:
 * EarthMate (Philadelphia, PA)
 * Mine Mix (Philadelphia, PA)

Related SourceWatch Articles

 * Sewage sludge
 * "Biosolids"
 * Sludge contaminants
 * Scientific Studies of Sewage Sludge
 * Kellogg Garden Products
 * Synagro