[paulbaumgart]

This doesn't address the underlying problem, but if this is something you'd like to avoid as a consumer, it's worth noting that sewage sludge is not permitted for use in growing organic produce:

> A very important part of the process-based regulatory framework is the prohibition of certain methods in organic production and handling. Methods like irradiation, sewage sludge, and genetic engineering are all expressly prohibited from being used when growing or processing organic foods.

https://www.usda.gov/about-usda/news/blog/organic-101-what-o...

[ashoeafoot]

And it can be used upfield though so the groundwater carries the dirt into organic fields. Many of these "rules" are written like physics stops at some arbitrary line. To be honest "organic" is a bit of a joke in the farming community , as their fields tend to "hug" coventional fields to prevent a fungi overgrowth .

And we all know agrarian traders who get certified "organic" stuff from countries were any seal or certificate is just a bribe away.

[euroderf]

> fungi overgrowth

Can you elucidate ?

[ashoeafoot]

All plants i know get fungi, especially late in the dry and ripen stage.It reduces yield, is toxic and carcinogenic. So fungizides are deployed during the plants lifetime to keep the contamination in check and the product healthwise unproblematic. Organic farming does not have that option. So the fungi rate of some organic farms approaches a total loss. So they hug conventional farms to get the fungizide floatsome for a better result.

[ashoeafoot]

https://r.jordan.im/download/organic/lazzaro2015.pdf

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32835995/

it also depends on a lot of other factors (weather and crop rotation , but the key reasons are discussed )

[giantg2]

Especially with all the junk (including meds) that goes down a sewer, I wouldn't want sewage sludge used.