Farmers cry foul in sludge lawsuit

ATHENS, Ga. --- Lawyers for University of Georgia scientists and the UGA Research Foundation have resorted to gutter tactics in a lawsuit over sewage sludge safety, according to two Augusta dairy farmers.

A lawyer for the farmers says someone on the UGA side leaked a letter to the media that he wrote offering to settle the case -- and the only two people the letter was addressed to were lawyers for UGA.

The farmers' lawyer, Ed Hallman, has asked a U.S. District Court judge to enter a default judgment in a lawsuit the farmers filed more than two years ago.

The farmers say in court documents that UGA scientists used false data to show that applying sewage sludge to their pastures would be safe for their cattle herds. Instead, it killed hundreds of dairy cows.

Court documents filed by Mr. Hallman say the leaker violated professional conduct rules and court rules and that the farmers can no longer get a fair trial because of the negative publicity.

Former EPA scientist David Lewis joined the farmers in the suit, which names EPA scientists, the research foundation and the UGA scientists as defendants. The foundation could be ordered to refund EPA grants and pay fines if the farmers are victorious.

Lawyers for the scientists and the foundation have defended the validity of the research and denied wrongdoing.

One farmer, Royce McElmurray of Augusta, has already won one round in a separate court case, when a federal judge in Georgia's Southern District ordered the U.S. Department of Agriculture to compensate him for his dead cows and contaminated land.

The judge in that case, Anthony Alaimo, also ruled the city of Augusta used "fudged" data to show the safety of the sludge, which contained serious pollutants such as chlordane and arsenic.