EPA Not Required to Regulate PFAS in Sewage Sludge, Court Rules
EPA is not required to identify and regulate PFAS in sewage sludge under the Clean Water Act (CWA), a federal judge ruled on September 29, 2025, in Farmer v. EPA, No. 24-cv-1654.
The CWA defines sewage sludge as “solid, semi-solid, or liquid residue generated during the treatment of domestic sewage in a treatment works.” Every two years, the law mandates that EPA review its sewage sludge regulations and release a report “for the purpose of identifying additional toxic pollutants [in sewage sludge] and promulgating regulations for such pollutants.”
The case was brought by a group of farmers, a nonprofit that promotes organic agriculture, and an organization representing Potomac River watershed residents. The plaintiffs argued that the widespread use of sewage sludge as fertilizer introduces PFAS into the food chain and contaminates water and property. “EPA’s failure to identify and regulate PFAS in sewage sludge exposes Plaintiffs to continuing harm from future applications of sewage sludge on nearby properties,” their June 2024 complaint states.
They sought a court order requiring EPA to identify 18 specific PFAS in its next biennial report and to regulate 11 PFAS that the agency had already identified in previous reports—including PFOA and PFOS.
In its opinion, the D.C. District court concluded that the plaintiffs’ request exceeds the CWA’s requirements because the statute does not impose date-certain deadlines on the agency. “Although the plain language of the CWA imposes a non-discretionary duty on EPA to review its regulations on a biennial basis, it does not mandate that EPA also identify and regulate sewage-sludge pollutants within the same time frame,” the opinion states.
The court further held that neither the biennial report nor EPA’s failure to list pollutants in that report constitutes a final agency action subject to Administrative Procedure Act (APA) review. However, the court noted that the plaintiffs could challenge EPA’s inaction through a CWA petition, the denial of which “could constitute a final agency action” under the APA.
