Locke Asks Limit On Fertilizer Toxin Washington Would Be First State To Have Restrictions

Washington may soon be the first state to limit toxic chemicals in fertilizer.

Gov. Gary Locke on Thursday proposed limiting levels of nine heavy metals - including lead, arsenic and cadmium - and requiring they be listed on fertilizer ingredient labels. His bill may be amended to include dioxin, a known carcinogen from industrial waste that state investigators just discovered in some fertilizers.

There is virtually no regulation of fertilizers in the United States. Last year, a Seattle Times investigation revealed that some heavy industries, such as steel and aluminum manufacturers, are recycling their toxic wastes into agricultural fertilizers, usually without the knowledge of the farmers who buy them.

At least 10 states and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency are considering new rules or laws. Locke’s proposal, crafted with the help of an advisory board of industry and environmental groups and based on Canada’s standards, is by far the most comprehensive. But it doesn’t go far enough for some environmentalists.

“We’re playing Russian roulette with our food supply and our children’s health,” said Laurie Valeriano of the Washington Toxics Coalition.

The fertilizer industry generally supports imposing some limits.

Although no research has documented any direct danger to consumers of crops grown with industrial-waste fertilizers, neither has the practice been proved safe, particularly over time.

State officials were particularly surprised by the level of dioxin they found in a recent analysis of fertilizers made from steel and wood wastes. Most previous research had ignored it.

“This new information on dioxin will warrant a good deal of investigation,” Carol Jolly, a top aide to Locke, said Wednesday.

“What we don’t know, that’s my concern,” Jolly said. “Now that the issue has been brought in our face, we’re going to have to learn a lot more before we know if it’s a concern for public safety.”

Dioxin is a colorless, odorless compound produced in waste incineration, steel production, paper manufacturing and oil refining. It is a prime suspect in cancers and reproductive problems.

The EPA, after a three-year study, said there is no safe dose of dioxin. An extremely small, one-time dose can cause birth defects. Dioxin does not enter plants easily through roots. But as Kay Jones, a Seattle-based dioxin expert and consultant for the pulp and paper industry, said, “The pathway that’s going to be the worst case for dioxin is where you put it on pasture land where you have cattle grazing. And the reason is that cattle consume about 5 percent of their diet in dirt.”

Locke’s bill would increase fertilizer testing and set aside $400,000 for a three-year study of the pathway of heavy metals from factories to fertilizers to food.

Two leading trade groups represented on the advisory board, the Northwest Food Processors Association and Farwest Fertilizer and Agrichemical Association, have already endorsed the idea of interim standards based on Canada’s.

The proposed legislation would authorize the Agriculture Department to adopt the Canadian metal standards by administrative action this year and tighten the standards after further studies.

Locke’s plan would require a label on all commercial fertilizers sold in this state, showing the list of the nine heavy metals and stating the product meets standards.

The bill would also raise the maximum penalty for violations from $1,000 to $27,500, as environmentalists sought. And it would extend the licensing and review process to gypsums and liming materials, as well as products that claim nutrient value. It would cover processed, but not raw, manures.