Use of human waste in fertilizer opposed

PHILADELPHIA, Dec. 29 (UPI) -- Residents of a Pennsylvania township neighborhood say fertilizer made of human waste used by nearby farms has seeped into their drinking water.

Several farmers in Lynn Township have obtained permits from the Department of Environmental Protection to fertilize their crops with a bio-solid called "granulite," a sewage sludge turned into dried pellets.

Thirty percent of granulite is made of human waste, and local residents say they're concerned about possible health effects when this sewage fertilizer seeps into the ground and water.

"There's a huge difference between using fertilizer and using human feces that's been treated with different chemicals," homeowner Bill Schaffhouser told WCAU-TV, Philadelphia.

"This stuff will end up in the food and meat they eat, the milk they drink … this is a real issue."

Schaffhouser says that he and his neighbors can no longer drink their water because the sewage fertilizer has seeped into the drinking water.

"It's on the streets, it's all through our neighbors yard right by this swing set and it's supposed to be regulated but who's regulating it? The DEP? I don't think so," Schaffhouser said.

Township officials said because the DEP issued the permits, the township cannot override them.