A decades-long practice of using textile mill sludge as free fertilizer has left nearly 10,000 acres of South Carolina farmland contaminated with toxic PFAS, prompting calls for a sweeping federal cleanup.
Hiroko Tabuchi reports for The New York Times.
In short:
- South Carolina officials are urging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to extend Superfund status to farmland around the shuttered Galey & Lord textile mill, citing widespread contamination from industrial sludge once promoted as fertilizer.
- The sludge, spread between 1993 and 2013 on more than 300 fields, contains PFAS, which are linked to cancer and other health problems; in some areas, contamination exceeds EPA safety limits by hundreds or thousands of times.
- Although the mill site itself was designated a Superfund site in 2022, this would mark the first time farmland is included due to contamination from sewage sludge fertilizer, raising serious concerns about food safety and long-term health risks.
Key quote:
“My family has been drinking, cooking, bathing and inhaling poison for years.”
— Kim Weatherford, resident near the abandoned Galey & Lord mill site
Why this matters:
PFAS persist in the environment and human body, with growing evidence linking them to cancer, hormone disruption, liver damage and developmental issues. Their use in consumer products and industrial processes has led to widespread environmental contamination. Applying sewage sludge as fertilizer spreads these chemicals directly onto farmland, potentially tainting food crops and water sources. In areas like South Carolina, residents who unknowingly consumed PFAS-laced water and food now face serious health uncertainties. The EPA has only recently acknowledged the scope of the problem, but regulation still lags. Farmers, caught in the crosshairs, are left without clear guidance, and rural communities shoulder the burden of decisions made decades ago — often with incomplete information about the risks.
Related EHN coverage: How toxic PFAS chemicals could be making their way into food from Pennsylvania farms
