Owners of sewage treatment works; land application, marketing, or distributing of sewage sludge.

Owners of sewage treatment works; land application, marketing, or distribution of sewage sludge; perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances; testing requirements. Directs any owner of a sewage treatment works land applying, marketing, or distributing sewage sludge in the Commonwealth, beginning January 1, 2027, to collect representative samples of finished sewage sludge products and have such samples analyzed by an accredited laboratory for perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The bill mandates certain outcomes for the land application of such products depending on the concentration of PFAS in such products. The bill directs the Department of Environmental Quality to modify all Virginia Pollution Abatement permits for the land application of sewage sludge and Virginia Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permits for sewage treatment works that include sewage sludge prepared for land application, marketing, or distribution as soon as practicable. The bill requires the Department to convene a work group to study the occurrence of PFAS in sewage sludge intended for land application within the Commonwealth. The Department is required to report the recommendations of the work group to the Governor and the Chairs of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources and House Committee on Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources by November 1, 2027.