Assigned to NREW AS PASSED BY COMMITTEE
ARIZONA STATE SENATE
Fifty-Sixth Legislature, First Regular Session
AMENDED
FACT SHEET FOR H.B. 2669
solid waste; sludge; water quality
(NOW: prohibition; biosolids; land application)
Purpose
Requires the Director of the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ),
notwithstanding any other law or rule, to require any land application of a substance that contains
sewage or septage to comply with the Sewage Sludge Program rules, including pathogen reduction
requirements consistent with the federal Clean Water Act.
Background
The Director of ADEQ must adopt rules to establish the Sewage Sludge Program that is
consistent with the federal Clean Water Act. The rules must provide for the regulation of all sewage
sludge use or disposal practices used in Arizona (A.R.S. § 49-255.03).
Biosolids are sewage sludge, including exceptional quality biosolids, that are placed on or
applied to the land to use the beneficial properties of the material as a soil amendment, conditioner
or fertilizer. Biosolids do not include: 1) sludge determined to be hazardous; 2) sludge with a
concentration of polychlorinated biphenyls equal to or greater than 50 milligrams per kilogram of
total solids; 3) grit, sand, gravel, cinders or other materials with a high specific gravity or
screenings generated during preliminary treatment of domestic sewage by a treatment works;
4) sludge generated during the treatment of either surface water or groundwater used for drinking
water; 5) sludge generated at an industrial facility during the treatment of industrial wastewater,
including industrial wastewater combined with domestic sewage; 6) commercial, industrial or
domestic septage combined with commercial or industrial septage; or 7) special wastes (A.A.C.
R18-9-1001).
There is no anticipated fiscal impact to the state General Fund associated with this
legislation.
Provisions
1. Requires the Director of ADEQ, notwithstanding any other law or rule, to require any land
application of a substance that contains sewage or septage to comply with the Sewage Sludge
Program rules, including pathogen reduction requirements consistent with the federal Clean
Water Act.
2. Requires a biosolid combined with any other law or rule, notwithstanding any other law or
rule, to be regulated as a solid waste.
3. Becomes effective on the general effective date. FACT SHEET – Amended
H.B. 2669
Page 2
Amendments Adopted by the Committee
1. Removes the prohibition on a person registering to apply to land, or applying to land, a
substance that contains biosolids, sewage sludge or septage within three miles of an area with
an outlined population density or within one mile of a crop produced for human consumption
or any property zoned residential.
2. Removes biosolids from the list of land application substances that must comply with the
Sewage Sludge Program rules.
House Action Senate Action
NREW 2/14/23 DPA/SE 10-0-0-0 NREW 3/30/23 DPA 6-0-1
3
rd
Read 3/7/23 60-0-0
Prepared by Senate Research
March 30, 2023
RA/slp