(1) The legislature finds that:
(a) Municipal sewage sludge is an unavoidable by-product of the wastewater treatment process;
(b) Population increases and technological improvements in wastewater treatment processes will double the amount of sludge generated within the next ten years;
(c) Sludge management is often a financial burden to municipalities and to ratepayers;
(d) Properly managed municipal sewage sludge is a valuable commodity and can be beneficially used in agriculture, silviculture, and in landscapes as a soil conditioner; and
(e) Municipal sewage sludge can contain metals and microorganisms that, under certain circumstances, may pose a risk to public health.
(2) The legislature declares that a program shall be established to manage municipal sewage sludge and that the program shall, to the maximum extent possible, ensure that municipal sewage sludge is reused as a beneficial commodity and is managed in a manner that minimizes risk to public health and the environment.
[ 1992 c 174 § 1. Formerly RCW 70.95J.005.]