"Ninth Circuit Appellate Court Hears Arguments to Compel Federal Action"
"For the third time in two decades the Environmental Protection Agency appeared in federal Appellate Court this week to defend its admittedly flawed approach to regulating the billions of pounds of manure running off into the nation’s waters from large industrial animal feeding operations. But unlike the previous Appellate Court cases in 2005 and 2011, when the plaintiffs were the major agricultural trade organizations seeking to weaken or eliminate agency regulations, this time the case was brought by 13 national and local environmental organizations arguing that after years of inaction EPA needs to drastically strengthen its oversight.
The argument made by Food and Water Watch and its allies is this: The EPA is unlawfully allowing roughly half of the nation’s more than 20,000 big livestock and poultry feeding facilities around the country to operate without permits required under the 1972 Clean Water Act. And the agency is violating the law by authorizing the big feedlots, known as concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs), to store and spread manure so haphazardly that drinking water for millions, and thousands of streams and lakes are being polluted with bacteria, nitrates, phosphorus and other contaminants.
“CAFOs are illegally discharging to waterways and have become a major source of unregulated point source pollution,” argued Emily Miller, attorney for Food and Water Watch, the lead plaintiff. “EPA has further admitted that its regulations have proven insufficient to compel Clean Water Act compliance and even stand in the way of effective enforcement.”"
Keith Schneider reports for Circle of Blue September 14, 2024.
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