Factory Farms: Polluting Rural Communities, Part II |
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October 8, 2008
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A hog farm can generate as much waste as a small city. |
Waste Overload
Industrialization and raising billions of farm animals annually have resulted in the intensive confinement of these chickens, pigs, turkeys, cattle and other animals—and the intensive problems faced by those who must contend with the impacts of factory farming.
Much of the environmental harm caused by factory farms comes from the volume of waste that must be stored and disposed of when continuously confining so many animals indoors, with some operations producing as much waste as an entire city.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), confined farm animals produce approximately 500 million tons of manure every year, amounting to about 3 times as much waste as humans produce in the United States.
On traditional mixed (or diversified) farms, farmers balance the number of animals with the land's ability to absorb the nutrients in their manure. On factory farms, this recycling of nutrients to replenish the soil and fertilize crops is absent because, rather than raise animals and crops together, animals are housed in close confinement indoors and there is typically not enough land available to spread all of the manure. Transporting the waste to fields in need of fertilizer is expensive, so it is typically applied to fields near the operation.
When animal waste is overapplied to land, thereby exceeding the soil's capacity to assimilate its nutrients, it can contaminate water supplies and emit harmful gases into the atmosphere. Of particular concern are pathogens that may end up in surface water, heavy metals and nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorous that can leach into groundwater, run off fields where manure has been applied, and, in the case of nitrogen, volatilize into ammonia emissions.
Next: Factory farms can also pollute local water supplies.
Related Links
Factory Farms: Polluting Rural Communities
Help Farm Animals...Follow the Three Rs
