A farmer’s plan to use treated sewage sludge, aka biosolids, as fertilizer in East Penn Township will be put on hold at least through the end of the year as a legal battle unfolds in county court.

At a meeting Monday night, the East Penn Township supervisors updated residents on their lawsuit against Synagro Inc., Dennis Cunfer, and other relatives of the Cunfer family, who operate a farm located on Smithlane Road in the township. Both sides were in court on Friday for a status conference.

Supervisor William Schwab said all parties agreed to respect a judge’s order temporarily blocking the use of biosolids until the lawsuit is resolved. A hearing scheduled for July to discuss the judge’s order has been canceled.

“The injunction will remain in place until the case is concluded, which is good news for us,” Schwab said.

Schwab said Synagro’s decision not to fight the injunction will save township taxpayers money. He predicted last month that it would cost the township $250,000 over the next two years to fund the legal battle, and require a tax increase, which Schwab called the “Cunfer litigation tax.” Now, he said, the cost will be about one-third of that.

The township’s lawsuit alleges that Synagro didn’t get a permit from the township to use biosolids, as required by a township ordinance. The farmer has held that state law supersedes the township’s ordinance.

East Penn’s supervisors say they are fighting the biosolids proposal because residents made it clear that they are against it. A petition circulated among residents has hundreds of signatures.

They appealed to the state Environmental Hearing Board to overturn the Department of Environmental Protection’s approval of Synagro’s biosolids proposal. That case is pending.

They also asked the state ethics commission to investigate Supervisor Deanna Cunfer, who is the farmer’s wife. The supervisors say she improperly used an internal township document to benefit her family’s proposal. She has resigned as township treasurer and pledged to abstain from votes involving the plan.

The lawsuit could take more than a year to resolve. Schwab said. Legal discovery, where both sides exchange requests for evidence, will take about six months.

Because of the new timeline of the suit, supervisors cancel ed upcoming town hall meetings regarding the biosolids proposal. They held four town hall meetings since the plan was announced in February.