Speak Out for Stronger Controls on Factory Farm Pollution

Factory farms dump millions of gallons of manure into the environment every year. Most factory farms, which raise thousands of animals in close quarters, store manure in lagoons that can be larger than football fields, and then spray it untreated on land. Excess manure flows into nearby waterways, killing fish, polluting drinking water and spreading antibiotic-resistant bacteria into the environment. The manure also emits toxins that pollute the air. And the lagoons themselves are prone to breaking, spilling animal wastes into surface water and leaching it into groundwater.

Although nearly 30 years ago the Clean Water Act identified large feedlots as a primary source of pollution, the EPA has not kept pace with the exploding growth of factory farms, and the agency's rules are riddled with loopholes, allowing some 70 percent of large factory farms to escape regulation. Even in cases in which the EPA or states require factory farms to obtain permits to control water pollution, those permits do not prevent untreated manure from reaching waterways.

The EPA proposed revised factory farm regulations in January and is accepting public comments through July 30.

ACTION NEEDED:

Send the EPA a message demanding strong regulations that will stop the environmental harm and public health threats caused by factory farms.

WRITE TO:

Diane Regas, Acting Assistant Administrator for Water
Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation Proposed Rule
Office of Water, Engineering and Analysis Division (4303)
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C. 20460
Email: CAFOS.comments@epa.gov