Broken Arrow council approves resolution urging study and caution on biosolids legislation

The Broken Arrow City Council approved a resolution expressing opposition to proposed legislation on biosolids and urging a more scientific review of how treated sewage solids are handled, city officials said.

Aaron McCullough, director of communications, said the resolution confirmed the city’s opposition to “a couple of different pieces of legislation — I think 2 senate bills and 1 house bill” related to biosolids. Vice Mayor Johnny Parks described the city’s concern as focused on how leftover solids from sewage treatment are managed and the cost and feasibility of further refinement.

Parks said the city’s resolution calls for more study before making major changes to biosolids policy. “They can be managed, by science sometimes. That’s kind of expensive also,” Parks said. He expressed concern about so-called “forever chemicals,” referring to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and related compounds such as perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS), and said refining biosolids to remove those chemicals could be costly. “Numbers I heard last night was up to maybe a million dollars to refine it,” Parks said.

Parks also said he attended meetings in Washington, D.C., on PFAS and that the issue is being addressed at the national level. The resolution, as described in the meeting, asks for a scientific approach and further study before the city accepts legislative changes affecting biosolids handling.

The transcript did not identify the bill numbers or the exact text of the resolution; the meeting recording did not provide a roll-call vote or mover/second. The council approved the resolution during the meeting’s consent/regular business, according to the recording.