You've sent me e-mail concerning some recent articles I wrote for The Seattle Times, "Fear in the Fields - how hazardous wastes become fertilizers." Because hundreds of people have written me concerning these articles - and I've just returned from a family vacation - I need to send, with apologies, a form letter reply.

First of all, thank you for your interest. I hope you will maintain the interest. I plan to keep working on the subject.

Here are some answers to frequently asked questions:

AVAILABILITY. The articles are on-line at The Seattle Times web site http://www.seattletimes.com/todaysnews/special.html#fields. This will be expanded throughout the year with follow-up articles. The most recent stories were Aug. 22, "State proposes tougher fertilizer rules," http://www.seattletimes.com/extra/browse/html97/fert_082297.html, and Aug. 7, "A first step toward labeling of toxins in fertilizers," http://www.seattletimes.com/extra/browse/html97/fert_080797.html.

In addition, there is a newsprint reprint of the initial articles, July 3, 4, 13 and 20, available for $1 per copy to cover postage and handling. Send requests to: Fear in the Fields Reprint, Seattle Times, PO Box 70, Seattle WA 98111-0070. We may have discounts for volume orders. As of now there are 3,000 copies left. These reprints look really sharp, with all of the original charts and pictures.

OTHER MEDIA: The wire service rewrite ran in short versions in Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, Des Moines and dozens of smaller cities. The web version was featured on Microsoft's Internet Explorer "Best of the Web." So far, however, no national TV or other general-circulation print reporters have picked up on the issue in the detail it deserves. The recycling of hazardous wastes into fertilizer is a complex topic. That's why it took me five months to report. At first it may seem hard to believe. But in the end, the underlying facts are quite straightforward. Skepticism is to be expected. I think we have broken new ground, so to speak. I am still hoping for wider distribution of this information.

REACTION: Hundreds of e-mails to me, overwhelmingly supportive; thank you. A smaller number of letters to the editor of the Seattle Times, mixed pro and con. U.S. Rep. Jim McDermott and Washington Gov. Gary Locke are working on legislation. No word from agriculture-committee chairs. The EPA has formed a working group, but EPA has a dual role of regulating and recycling wastes. A number of state regulators are considering action, notably Texas State Chemist George Latimer Jr. The fertilizer industry is responding by saying their products are safe. The Seattle Toxics Coalition is coordinating health and environmental groups who want to follow up on this. The contact person there is Laurie Valeriano at (206)632-1545 or lvaleriano@watoxics.org. Whether anything is done, remains to be seen.

HOME FERTILIZER: Many writers wondered whether home and garden fertilizers contain these recycled wastes and heavy metals. Some do; some don't. Which ones? Nobody can say. Nobody keeps track. This is an area that I hope to follow-up. The reputable companies do test their products, but they don't report all the chemical ingredients on the labels. Maybe they'll tell you if you ask. Government agencies don't test the fertilizer products.

FOOD SAFETY: This is the big question. Obviously the heavy metals in the soil are taken up in some plants and the food chain. How much they are absorbed from the soil is a very complex question depending on many factors. It is a question that's not watched very closely. Heavy metals in sewage sludge have been studied, regulated and publicly disclosed to a much greater degree than heavy metals in inorganic fertilizer. The Food and Drug Administration is saying our food is safe. Over the years, FDA tests show declining levels of some contaminants in food, such as lead, which has declined since the ban on leaded gasoline. At the same time, other experts say the safe levels are lower than we previously thought. Other countries have tighter standards. This is all very much open to further study and discussion.

I hope you find this note useful. Please do not hesitate to write me again.

Duff Wilson
Staff Reporter
The Seattle Times
dwil-new@seatimes.com
(206)464-2288 phone (206)464-2261 fax
PO Box 70, Seattle, WA 98111