Inside AgTech operations
YUMA COUNTY, Ariz. (KYMA) - Residents in Yuma County have raised concerns about a local biosolids operation, citing concerns about odors and flies.
AgTech opened its Somerton-area facility to media and elected officials, giving a tour of how the process works from start to finish.
Biosolids are the treated byproduct of wastewater processing and are commonly used as fertilizer on farmland under state and federal guidelines.
During the tour, company leaders explained how the material is brought in by truck, processed on site, and applied to farm fields used to grow crops such as alfalfa, oats, and Sudan grass for livestock feed.
Company leaders say the material is injected below the soil surface rather than left exposed, which they say helps reduce odors and limits conditions that can attract flies. They also said they use additional fly control methods as part of their operations.
Kevin Good, an operations manager with AgTech who says he has been with the company for 22 years, described the farm's operations and crop production.
"Here on this farm, there is 6,000 acres of farmable area on a ten square mile property, and we're growing Sudan, oats and alfalfa, and it's all baled for animal feed," said Good.
Daniel Jackson, AgTech's Compliance and Operations Manager, explained how the material is handled once it arrives on site.
"What we're looking at is a truck coming in and dumping the biosolids from San Diego. So he's going to come to one of our bridges. They're going to fill it with water, so it’ll loosen up the material. Then, they're going to go and dump the material out," said Jackson.
When asked about material coming from California, company leaders said the region does not have local synthetic or chemical fertilizer production facilities, and that farmers already rely on agricultural inputs sourced from out of state.
Jackson said the operation is conducted under state and federal guidelines and that biosolids land application is a common practice in Arizona and across the country.
"We're just another farmer in the community. You know what I mean? And that's all we want to be," Good said.
