Connecticut has become the second state in the Northeast to ban biosolids-based products. The prohibition is part of a new law that could significantly reduce sources of PFAS into the water environment in Connecticut.  An Act Concerning the Use of PFAS in Certain Products (PA 24-59) was passed by the Connecticut Legislature and signed into law by Governor Ned Lamont on June 5.  It was a bill that NEBRA’s Reg-Leg Committee had been watching and supporting for its source reduction potential. However, a late addition to the bill banned the use and sale of biosolids products in the state as of October 2024.

The aim of this legislation was to ban products with intentionally added PFAS -- including outdoor apparel, carpeting, and firefighter gear.  It is similar to what other states like Maine have proposed for product bans. Like Maine, Connecticut has followed with a biosolids ban.

The original bill, SB-292, was introduced in February and did not include mention of biosolids or wastewater sludge. In addition to NEBRA, the Connecticut Water Environment Association (CTWEA) and the New England Water Environment Association (NEWEA) were also tracking the bill. SB-292 was voted out of the Joint Environment Committee on March 20th without the biosolids and wastewater sludge language. That vote was unanimous. From there it went to the Senate. A subsequent amendment was introduced by Senator Lopes from the 6th District which included definitions for “biosolids” and “wastewater sludge” and the ban on biosolids products. The language reads: No person shall use, sell or offer for sale in this state as a soil amendment any biosolids or wastewater sludge that contain PFAS.  

The amended bill went up for Roll Call votes in the Senate (unanimous) on May 2nd and House (unanimous) on May 7th. The section of the law applying to biosolids products is effective October 1st of this year. The timeline for other products is varied over the next two to three years.

It is known that all biosolids contain PFAS (Characterizing and Comparing Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances in Commercially Available Biosolid and Organic Non-Biosolid-Based Products | Environmental Science & Technology (acs.org)). Those levels continue to come down following the voluntary production ban in the early 2000s in the United States. Industrial Pretreatment Programs have played a key role in reducing industrial/commercial inputs of PFAS into water resource recovery facilities (WRRFs) thus reducing the concentrations in sludges. But there will always remain a significant domestic input into WRRFs that cannot be controlled other than by voluntary actions and product bans to reduce inputs. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has nearly completed an updated risk assessment for biosolids, specific to several PFAS compounds, and that is expected to be published this Fall. The development of federal regulations and screening levels (updating the 40 CFR Part 503 rules) is expected to follow.

According to the National Biosolids Data Project (www.BiosolidsData.org), Connecticut is primarily reliant on incineration as a biosolids end use. There are only two WRRFs in CT that create biosolids products: Stamford and Fairfield. The impacts on biosolid management operations for those two large WRRFs are unknown as neither of those communities are NEBRA members. However, the ban is expected to have an impact on the region as there are currently a lot of dried biosolids and compost products being imported and used in Connecticut.

There may be some leeway with the definition of soil amendment versus some biosolids products that have fertilizer certification. There is also a section (j) in the law that exempts certain products like medical devices, used products, and “any product made with not less than eighty-five per cent recycled content”. The 85% or greater recycled material exemption was also not in the original bill and ironically can clearly be applied to wastewater sludges.

It is not known where the language for the late amendments came from, but a likely source would be the Connecticut Department of Agriculture (DOA) based on their 2022 recommended limit of 1.4 parts per billion for five PFAS. That document was published by DOA’s Agriculture Commodities Unit in conjunction with the Remediation Division of the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental (CTDEEP).

As far as the Fiscal Note associated with the new law, it was scant. The financial analysis reflects direct administrative costs only such as personnel required by CTDEEP to administer and enforce the law. Those costs, likely underestimated, are expected to be covered by fees that the CTDEEP is authorized to assess. The fiscal note makes no mention of indirect cost impacts this new law will have on wastewater utility costs for managing biosolids.

Questions remain about implementation of this new law, specifically as it related to biosolids products. PA 24-59 tasks CTDEEP with enforcing the law and its various dates for product bans. CTDEEP may coordinate enforcement with other departments such as Agriculture, Consumer Protection, and Public Health. Late information requests to CTDEEP for this article were not received in time.

Link to Legislation and all related documents: C G A - Connecticut General Assembly