New water pollution reduction controls target industrial feedlot operations
EPA's new requirements would apply to as many as 39,000 concentrated animal feeding operations across the country.
On Dec. 15 the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed strict new controls to protect public health and the environment from one of the nation's leading causes of water pollution—animal wastes from large, industrial feedlot operations.
CAFO = Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation
A CAFO is currently defined as having 1,000 or more cattle or comparable "animal units" of other livestock. Smaller operations also may be CAFOs if they are a threat to water quality. Today, only an estimated 2,500 large and small livestock operations have enforceable permits under the Clean Water Act.
EPA is co-proposing two options for a new CAFO definition
One proposed definition could include livestock facilities with more than 500 cattle or other animal units. The other proposal would require operations with 300–1,000 cattle to have a permit if meet certain risk-based conditions.
In addition to stricter permitting requirements, the proposal includes several new strict controls:
- poultry, veal, and swine operations would be required to prevent all discharges from their waste storage pits and lagoons where wastes are collected;
- the proposal eliminates potential exemptions from permits presently used in some states; as a result, EPA expects that all large livestock operations will now have to acquire permits;
- under this proposal, EPA and the states will issue co-permits for corporations and contract growers to ensure financial resources exist to meet environmental requirements;
- the spreading of manure on the land owned by livestock facilities would be limited to protect water ways.
In March l999, EPA and the U.S. Department of Agriculture issued a Unified National Strategy for Animal Feeding Operations, in response to public concern about contamination of rivers, lakes, streams, coastal waters and ground water from livestock manure.
EPA will take public comment for 120 days and will hold public meetings around the country on today's proposal.
For more information, visit EPA's Office of Water website at www.epa.gov/owm/afo.htm.
Edited by Tracy Fabre
Managing Editor, Water Online