Many readers have vegetable gardens. Growing up I remember my neighbor's garden. He always grew the biggest zucchinis and had the most tomatoes. I never found out what he added to the soil to gain that yield.

How far would you go to produce trophy zucchinis or enviable bumper tomato crops? Recently, I informed you that some industrial waste was finding its way into fertilizer and this was creating a potential environmental problem because some heavy metals were found in the fertilizer. Products in question included some that were commercially available for home garden use.

Now, in the "how far would you go" category, we have another fertilizer issue. Specifically, should we allow companies to make fertilizer from human waste? Is such an idea the next logical step in recycling - or is it, as I believe, recycling gone mad?

Many residents of Polk Township, Pennsylvania do not have to think long and hard about this question (neither do I!). Two years ago they had a big fight with a company that was selling fertilizer made, in part, from sewage waste. According to published reports, it had a terrible odor. Some described it as a "gagging" odor. Although government regulators from New Jersey, where the stuff was manufactured, seemed to vouch for the stuff, locals on the other side of the Delaware just were not as convinced. Which makes you wonder how New Jersey would have felt about this issue if the stuff was being added to Garden State farms and home gardens?

The fact remains that there is increasingly intensive pressure to find a place to deposit sludge produced in our sewage treatment plants throughout the U.S. In the old days, they used to take this sewage waste to municipal landfills. But the number of landfills in this country is quickly dwindling and other options are disappearing as well. Ocean dumping is certainly not favored and incineration is seldom viewed as an attractive option.

Not long ago, the Food and Drug Administration was considering the disgusting idea of allowing farmers to apply sewage sludge to their fields. There was a lot of opposition, especially from organic farmers. Organic produce sales are rapidly climbing and it appears that they were concerned about public reaction if people started associating human waste with organic produce. I guess the fear is that there might be such a thing as produce that is "too organic." So far, that idea has not been approved. Thank Heavens.

Another factor to keep in mind is that modern sewage treatment plants often accept industrial waste as well as human waste for processing. This means that the sewage sludge can contain industrial waste, including heavy metals that we do not want contaminating our food.

There is probably a difference between using fertilizer on fields containing trees, plants and shrubs, and using it on fields for food production. Frank Womak, an "agrostologist" at a company called Greensmiths located in Frisco, Texas told me that he thinks there is such a difference. His company sells fertilizer that is made from, in part, human sewage.

According to Frank, customer acceptance of this product is strong. He says that the viral or bacterial threats are not high and that the product works wells on fields used to grow turf, shrubs and trees. He also says this is a great way to recycle. But, Frank draws the line when it comes to using this kind of fertilizer on fields used for vegetables, fruits and edible plants. He does not believe, and I do not believe, that any kind of organic waste should be used on food fields, be it human or animal waste.

In any event, Truth in Labeling Laws should help resolve this issue. I believe that the vegetables should be marked "This Food was Grown In Soil That Was Fertilized with Human Sewage" if they do ever start mixing in sewage waste into vegetable growing fields. Don't we have a right to that kind of information?

The information provided in this column is written by Stuart Lieberman,a practicing environmental attorney, and is for general information purposes only. It is not legal advice and should not be used in place of legal advice.

Stuart Lieberman, Esq., and IRED.Com, Inc., will not accept any responsibilty for any reliance on the information in this column or any damages whatsoever resulting from reading this column.