HENDERSON COUNTY–Henderson County Commissioners’ Court voted unanimously Aug. 20 to approve a resolution opposing applying biosolids in Henderson County.
Before the vote, citizen commenter Randy Robertson described it “as kind of a crusade because of how dangerous this stuff is and how it will impact all our lives.” Robertson added, “You will be surprised how many of your constituents are on board,” saying he “hope(s) the whole state of Texas does away with it.”
Precinct 2 Commissioner Scott Tuley and Precinct 1 Commissioner Wendy Spivey have been involved in the issue, County Judge Wade McKinney said. Tuley said he got involved because a Van Zandt County proposed biosolids permit which would affect Cedar Creek Lake and the Trinity River basin, according to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ, the permitting authority), and that he “is a big proponent for personal property rights” but he believes the county needs to help neighboring property owners. “There’s nothing good about biosolids,” Tuley said. “It’s a man-made chemical and highly toxic.”
Tuley stated: “We as commissioners, I think, need to band together for our farmers, our agriculturals, our beef cattle guys, to have this stuff not delivered to Henderson County and spread out over our agricultural land here in Henderson County.”
Spivey said TCEQ isn’t regulated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to test biosolids “for harmful chemicals” such as PFAS. Added Spivey, “We’re just trying to help the legislators see that we care about our community and our land and our animals,” Spivey stated.
Tuley said he’s been in talks with State Rep. Keith Bell, State Sen. Robert Nichols and U.S. Rep. Lance Gooden. “I’ve seen how it could affect the land, the cattle, the hay population,” Tuley remarked. The biosolids applicator has been shut down in Alabama and Missouri because they didn’t follow regulations, Tuley told the court.
Tuley continued, “I think today is where we need to take a stance that in Henderson County, that this stuff isn’t welcome here and find somewhere else to dump it.“ Tuley later added, “It may be cheap fertilizer, but it ain’t good fertilizer,” Tuley.
Precinct 4 Commisioner Mark Richardson Richardson asked whether systems that just treat drinking water, such as Athens Municipal Water Authority, which he said told him they spread their biosolids which don’t contain human wastes on land they own. He asked whether it would affect them. Tuley said he didn’t know but he thinks spraying water would be fine. “We’d have to see,” Tuley commented, saying human wastes contain the harmful chemicals that are passed on by items such as perfumes.
Said Precinct 3 Commissioner Chuck McHam, “This resolution, we don’t have any way to enforce anything about it.” He continued, “It’s a way of having the state look at the issue.” McHam asked whether aerobic systems in rural areas also add the chemicals in question to the environment. He also asked about dairy farmers using sludge on their pastures and treatment plants. “What are we going to do with this stuff?” McHam queried, also saying “There’s a lot more questions than there are answers about this stuff.”
Richardson said a landowner in his precinct has applied for such a permit, half a mile from Lake Palestine.
“That is the point, that biosolids will be around until the end of time,” McKinney said. “It’s not so much the biosludge, it’s that that’s where these substances end up being at (via human waste).” Firefighting foam also contributes the chemicals to the environment, the judge said.
“The agricultural benefits of biosludge is there, minus those chemicals,” McKinney stated. 
“These are forever chemicals that you don’t get rid of,” McHam said. “There’s a lot of it coming from the urban areas putting fires out, it’s not just an ag problem.” McHam, later saying “the ag is a very small part of it.”
The court also enacted a 14-day burn ban for Henderson County. County Fire Marshal Shane Renberg said he requested the agenda item because the county is over the 575 threshold of whether to call for a burn ban (according to the Keetch-Byram Drought Index), being at 579 as of Aug. 19, and that the number is increasing anywhere from 10 -17 points per day.
Renberg reported that over the past couple of weeks, there have been 20 notable grass fires, one involving about 20 acres. Fuel load in the woods is high, he said, especially on the west side of the county. Fire chiefs on the west side of the county said burn ban needed, according to Renberg. Tuley said the index stands at 591 as of the meeting, after looking at an updated link.
Because of weather conditions and rising numbers, the county could be “definitely bad” by next week, Tuley said. Renberg said the west end of the county’s index number is at 655, adding the judge can remove the ban without coming back to the court.
The court also approved a resolution authorizing a county grant to Meals on Wheels East Texas for program year 2025, which McKinney said is done annually so Meals on Wheels can draw down Texas Department of Agriculture funding to help supplement the program, and which not related to additional funds the organization asked for an Aug. 6 commissioners’ court meeting.
In other business, the court:
• Approved adopting optional fees on vehicle registration fees in Henderson County, which is done annually to ratify bridge fees and has been in place for at least 30 years, according to McKinney.
• Approved a request from the Henderson County Tax Assessor-Collector to refund tax overpayments, issuing three checks for $18,368.48.
• Set a Sept. 10 public hearing for the 2025 county budget.
• Set a proposed 2024 tax rate of $0.312379 (the current rate is $0.331392), which funds the 2025 county budget.
• Set a Sept. 10 public hearing for the proposed 2024 county tax rate.
• Approved two right-of-way permits for East Cedar Creek Fresh Water Supply District to road bore under Lowe Drive for a new sewer tap and along Camelot Drive to repair a sewer main, both located in Precinct 2.
• Approved paying fiscal year 2024 bills of $287,440.47.
• Approved a plat for three lots in the Martinez addition along County Road 4336, located in Precinct 4.