2/5 Support H. 303: Ban the Land Application of Sewage Sludge
H. 303 will not progress without significant and immediate public support. If you believe, as we do at Rural Vermont, that banning the land application of sewage sludge would be an important milestone to advance the existing legislative intent to regulate and reduce the existence of PFAS that the environment and humans are exposed to, then act now! The Maine example shows that PFAS in sewage sludge pose significant risks for the viability of the farmers, land, and food products coming from the existing sites where sewage is still being applied. We believe that H.303 should pass into law and that it could be amended to strike a compromise by setting a policy that would ban any expansion of the land application of sewage sludge while phasing in the ban of any continued application over a period of time to allow for a feasibility study of other long-term uses of the material. In addition, Rural Vermont recommends that H.303 needs to copy the Maine legislation regarding the safety net it provided to farms affected by any contamination that could be found on Vermont farms in the future.
Below is a sample message and contact information that you can use to reach out to the members of the House Committee on Environment to request that they advance H.303 now!
DRAFT MESSAGE
Email the Chair of the Committee, Rep. Amy Sheldon (you can include other committee members as well) at asheldon@leg.state.vt.us
*Please feel free to personalize this draft message by inserting your own opinion on this topic for your outreach to become more effective.
Dear Chair Rep. Amy Sheldon,
Banning the land application of sewage sludge is an important milestone to advance the existing legislative intent to regulate and reduce the existence of PFAS (“forever chemicals”) that humans and the environment are exposed to. The Maine example shows that PFAS in sewage sludge pose significant risks for the viability of the farmers, land and food products coming from the existing sites where sewage is still being applied. I believe that H.303 should pass into law and that it could be amended by setting a policy in place that would ban the expansion of the land application of sewage sludge while phasing in the ban of any continued application over a period of time to allow for a feasibility study. H.303 should copy recent Maine legislation regarding the safety net it provided to farms affected by any contamination.
I kindly request that your committee keep working on H.303!
Respectfully,
[your name]”