Posted October 17, 2013
A coalition of community, animal welfare, and
environmental organizations has filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) challenging the Agency’s withdrawal of a proposed rule
that would have allowed the collection of information, such as locations and
animal population sizes, from factory farms, according to a Farm Futures article
available here.
The Center for Food Safety, Environmental Integrity
Project, Food & Water Watch, The Humane Society of the United States, and
Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement filed the lawsuit in the U.S. District
Court for the District of Columbia, arguing that the Agency’s withdrawal of the
proposed rule “lacks the rational basis required by law.” The groups also argue that the information is
“critical” to the EPA’s ability to protect waterways from livestock farms. The Complaint is available here.
The EPA proposed rule allowed the Agency to start gathering data
from Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) with the goal of making the
data publicly available under the Clean Water Act (CWA). The proposed rule, known as the CWA Section
308 Rule, was created as part of a court settlement. The Agency withdrew the proposed rule in July
of 2012.
Agriculture groups support the EPA’s decision to
withdraw the rule. Don Parrish, senior
director of congressional relations at the American Farm Bureau Federation
said, “We believe this is less about the government doing a good job of
regulating livestock operations and more about the ability of NGOs and
environmental groups trying to gain access to information.”
Wenonah Hauter, executive director at Food & Water
Watch stated, “Our review of these records confirms what EPA has already
admitted in its preamble to the 308 Rule.
The data from the states is inconsistent, incomplete and, ultimately,
will not allow the agency to finally begin the process of properly regulating
these highly polluting facilities,” according to a press release from Food
& Water Watch available here.
