The future of a proposed fertilizer facility in Saratoga County is unclear — and so are plans for a Fulton County location.
Saratoga Biochar Solutions has been trying to build a plant in the town of Moreau for years. After a previous town board approved the project, outcry from residents and renewed focus from the current town board has stalled progress on the plant.
Activists say the process Saratoga Biochar is proposing to use, heating up biosolids, so-called sewage sludge, to create fertilizer is untested and carries potential long-term health impacts.
Saratoga Biochar says its pyrolysis technology poses an innovative solution to the region’s growing biosolids problems.
The company applied for a USDA Fertilizer Production Expansion Program grant. CEO Raymond Apy.
“We were awarded $20.5 [million] and that money is allocated across three phases of the project. So, the first tranche comes and is applied for costs for the first phase of the Moreau project, and then there’s another tranche for the second phase and then the third phase. And it stipulates the money has to all be received and used within five years. It’s a reimbursement grant. So, basically, we incur costs to construct the facility and purchase and install the equipment and then we get reimbursed up to the amount available from the grant,” said Apy.
Before the grant is approved, the USDA must review public comments. The window to submit closed at the beginning of the month but was extended to July 19th.
The agency did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Tom Masso has helped organize the public input effort to urge the USDA to reject Saratoga Biochar’s application.
“The message to the USDA is take this money and give it to someone who will use it wisely. I have no problem with supporting additional fertilizer production in this country, but not this project. Not this place. Not an unproven and risky technology. Nobody here wants to be guinea pig—you’ve probably heard that term from a number of people. But it’s time for everybody to step up and submit their comments,” said Masso.
The proposed $83 million plant would see more than 700 tons of biosolids shipped to the northern Saratoga County plant for processing six days a week.
Saratoga Biochar is still waiting for state Department of Environmental Conservation approval, but the current town board implemented a construction moratorium in the industrial park.
Tracy Frisch is a member of the Clean Air Action Network and is doubtful that the grant will go to Saratoga Biochar.
“It’s a competitive federal grant. So, why a company that does not have any track record or facility should get funded is — when all the fertilizer projects in the whole country. It doesn’t make any sense,” said Frisch.
Recent EPA guidelines say pyrolysis has the potential to be used in biochar production, but more research needs to be done to evaluate its safety at an industrial scale.
Facing opposition in Moreau, Saratoga Biochar leaders presented a plant proposal to Fulton County officials in April. Apy says progress on those plans never moved beyond preliminary discussions.
“We met with Economic Development and Industrial Development people from the county and we reviewed several locations within the Johnstown Industrial Park and within the Gloversville Industrial Park and there were no sites that were really viable, Aaron, because they don’t have—they’re missing utilities basically. None of those locations have the full compliment of utilities like the Moreau Industrial Park has with natural gas and plenty of electric and water and sewer,” said Apy.
Apy says he is committed to seeing the Moreau plant through to completion, adding there are other potential locations his company is eyeing, although he wouldn’t share where.
