Image Credit: CFJC Today / Kent Simmonds

By Jill Sperling

Blocking Biosolids

Turtle Valley residents set up road block to stop transportation of biosolids

Apr 29, 2019 | 5:14 PM

CHASE, B.C. — Turtle Valley residents have set up a road block, preventing Arrow Transportation trucks hauling biosolids from entering private property where the sewage product was being used to reclaim previously infertile soil.

The residents say their environmental and health concerns over the biosolids have not been properly addressed.

“We have stopped one truck this morning, it showed up about 8:00. It was turned away, they were escorted by Arrow employees as well,” said Turtle Valley resident Connie Seaward. “They were very respectful and turned around and headed back, RCMP was here as well and let us know so long as we’re being peaceful we have a right to be here as well.”

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Seaward says the concerned residents have been allowing local traffic through the blockade at English Road, the route the trucks have been traveling to bring biosolids to the Turtle Valley Bison Ranch.

She says they will not leave until answers are provided about the product that is being brought in from Kamloops.

“We’ve asked for testing of the water, the creek and the lake, before spreading and after that we haven’t received,” Seaward said. “We’ve asked for testing of the Class B biosolids, with the, as they refer to them, ’emerging contaminants of concern,’ literally everything you flush down a toilet goes into a Class B biosolid.”

Image Credit: CFJC Today / Kent Simmonds

Regional Manager for Arrow Environmental Jeff Mayer says there is conflicting science on the environmental impacts of biosolids.

“We subscribe to the science that ultimately informs the regulations and that’s the science that’s endorsed by the Ministry of Environment,” he said. “We respect it to be the most informed position on biosolids and that’s the regulation to which we design our projects around.”

Image Credit: CFJC Today / Kent Simmonds

Mayer says the application process is such that the sewage product holds the soil together.

“Unlike a lot of other applications, we actually fabricate a soil, whereas a number of other programs or different players in the space actually just top-dress the soil, so they actually just place it right on the surface,” Mayer said. “Our program is actually less prone or less exposed to erosion and things like seepage.”

Seaward says there are simply too many unknowns for residents to feel comfortable with the project.

“Once it’s on here all of these unknowns that even the government is unsure about, it’s too late at that point to remove this from the soil and from the water source that all flows right downstream to Shuswap,” Seaward said.

Arrow Transportation began bringing the biosolids into the area around 10 days ago and with the work being halted Mayer says the company is exploring its legal options.

“Obviously it’s shut us down for today,” Mayer said. “At Arrow we respect that, with any project, there’s going to be a diversity of opinions and we respect everyone’s right to their opinion, that being said, we have a project here that we need to see get completed in partnership with the City of Kamloops and we’re going to take all legal steps necessary to ensure that gets done.”