Questions over contamination from per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, in sewage sludge have spilled into public view in recent years, and state leaders are increasingly eyeing solutions in 2026.
So far this year, legislators have introduced six bills in four states addressing concerns over contamination, according to advocacy organization Safer States. Those bills are expected to build on existing rules previously imposed in states such as Colorado, Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New York and Wisconsin.
The action comes as the federal government has taken a measured approach to PFAS contamination since the inauguration of President Donald Trump last year. The U.S. EPA under Lee Zeldin has not engaged in a full-scale undoing of proposed Biden-era regulations, defending its right to declare certain PFAS chemicals as hazardous waste. But the agency has indicated it will roll back drinking water standards for certain kinds of PFAS chemicals.
More tellingly, the administration has remained quiet on a draft risk assessment of PFAS in biosolids issued by the Biden administration a year ago. Republicans in the U.S. House attempted to insert language into a funding bill last year blocking the administration from taking any action on the assessment. Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-Maine, later said she got that rider removed.
Amid federal inaction, more state leaders are stepping up. That includes a range of actions, whether it's lawmakers imposing a total ban on the land application of sewage sludge, as is the case in Maine and Connecticut, or regulators using monitoring programs to prevent contamination from entering wastewater treatment plants, as Michigan has done for several years.
“Regulators and legislators look to other legislators in other states, so we see a lot of copying across the states,” Lynne Moss, residuals and odor control practice leader for Black & Veatch, said during a webinar hosted by the Mid-Atlantic Biosolids Foundation last week.
Moss said a tiered approach to PFAS contamination remains the most common strategy states are taking. She also said product bans have become a popular way of getting PFAS out of disposal streams, though one such ban in California was vetoed by Gov. Gavin Newsom last year.
Last month, New York became the most recent state to announce new restrictions when it laid out requirements for composters using biosolids to test for PFAS. Other states are expected to take action this year. Maryland Sen. Sara Love is expected to introduce legislation which would ban the land application of sludge with PFOA and PFOS levels above 50 parts per billion and impose management restrictions if a plant's sludge reaches levels between 25 and 50 parts per billion, according to Lisa Ochsenhirt, vice president and senior counsel at AquaLaw.
Legislative action is not limited to just East or West Coast states. In Mississippi, for instance, S.B. 2022 would require annual testing of sludge and compost made from sludge, and it would allow the state's Air and Water Pollution Control Commission to set PFAS limits in sludge that farmers seek to apply to land.
Oklahoma has also seen regular debate over PFAS restrictions due to concerns from the state's agricultural industry. Several bills have been introduced there in recent years. Last year, SB 3 would have phased down the land application of sludge before instituting a total ban beginning July 1, 2027.
The bill passed the Oklahoma Senate in April, but it died in the House Agriculture Committee chaired by Rep. Kenton Patzkowsky, sparking criticism from environmental advocates. This year, Patzkowsky is bringing the legislature a biosolids proposal of his own. HB 3403 would create the Oklahoma Biosolids Land Application Research Pilot Program at Oklahoma State University, which would research the use of biosolids and their environmental impact.
Patzkowsky's office wasn't immediately available for comment. But the strategic pivot demonstrates the difficulties legislators face with gathering consensus on a plan of action.
