Marks Dairy Farm Manure Spill Threatens Environment and Public Health |
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August 24, 2005
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USDA
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A manure lagoon in an upstate New York dairy farm burst in early August, creating an environmental disaster and killing hundreds of thousands of fish in nearby Black River. The spill occurred August 10 when one of the earthen walls in a manure lagoon on the property collapsed, depositing 3 million gallons of liquid manure into the river.
The Black River's northwest current carried the massive quantities of liquid manure from Marks Dairy Farm, depleting the water of oxygen and poisoning countless aquatic animals with ammonia. The resulting assault on wildlife is currently estimated at a death toll of 200,000 to 250,000 fish, including bass, pickerel, pike, trout, and walleye.
Paying the Price
Since the overflow occurred, the fish have been seen in large numbers, bloated and floating to the surface. Among the penalties that may be imposed, the dairy operation may be ordered to pay a fine of 10 dollars for each animal killed. The number of fish ultimately killed by the manure spill may eventually total in the millions, and it may take years for the fish population to recover.
New York officials tried to lessen the environmental devastation that will inevitably result from the pollution by increasing the flow of water to the river's tributaries. The spill also forced Watertown, New York, to cease its intake of water from the Black River for its public water supply.
In Canada, officials are wary of the consequences that will ensue if the manure reaches Canadian towns that neighbor the river or Lake Ontario.
With 4,500 animals, Marks Dairy Farm near Lowville, New York, is one of the largest facilities in Lewis County, and is currently facing more than $2 million in fines related to the spill. The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) delivered a Notice of Violations to the Marks Dairy Farm and will continue its investigation of the animal factory to determine whether additional charges are warranted, according to the DEC Commissioner.
Poisonous Potential
Even without a manure spill, factory farm excrement can poison the water. The intensive confinement of thousands to hundreds of thousands of animals results in quantities of manure that often exceed the soil's absorption rate. When the soil is saturated with higher levels of nutrients than can be absorbed, the result is runoff leading to potentially serious ground and water pollution.
Runoff that reaches the water can cause eutrophication, in which an increase in mineral and organic nutrients depletes the water of oxygen. The ensuing overgrowth of algae and other marine plants competes with fish for oxygen, creating an environment in which plant life thrives while animal life suffers.
Health Hazard
Factory farm animal manure also threatens air quality. During decomposition, noxious levels of gases, such as hydrogen sulfide and ammonia, are emitted, putting workers and nearby residents at risk of developing a number of acute and chronic illnesses. Studies have shown that those who live near factory farms are more likely to suffer from a range of medical problems, including diarrhea, sore throat, cough, chest tightness, nasal congestion, heart palpitations, shortness of breath, sudden fatigue, headaches, nausea, sudden loss of consciousness, comas, seizures, and, ultimately, even death.
In 2002, Iowa State University and the University of Iowa released a joint report asserting that the hydrogen sulfide and ammonia emissions from large-scale animal confinement facilities can pose a health risk to humans and called for Iowa to develop air quality standards to stop factory farm air pollution. These findings, among others, prompted the American Public Health Association to pass a resolution in 2004 to urge officials to adopt a moratorium on factory farms, as neighbors suffer myriad ailments.
Despite the documented findings of factory farm air pollution and the existing authority to hold them accountable, the Environmental Protection Agency has offered factory farms immunity from standards established by the Clean Air Act. The "Air Quality Compliance Agreement" extends amnesty for all previous violations of this federal law, including those for which fines have already been imposed, in exchange for participation in a two-year study to gather information on emissions.
Factory farms that participate in the agreement must pay a nominal fee of $2,500 and a one-time penalty of $200 to $100,000, depending on the size of the facility, for "presumed" past violations. Under existing rules, however, factory farms in violation of the Clean Air Act can be fined $27,500 per day. The agreement allows these facilities to evade fines for toxic emissions until 2007.
An Ugly Business
Indeed, factory farming poses real risks to public health and environmental sustainability, and, of course, inflicts grave harms on farm animals. The chickens, pigs, turkeys, cows, and other animals raised for meat, milk, and egg production suffer at the hands of companies that value intensive output more than animal welfare, as U.S. animal agribusiness raises ten billion land animals for human consumption, with the least amount of space, time, care, and concern.
Farm animals suffer from countless abuses, including selective breeding for elevated production, overuse of antibiotics, overcrowding, intensive confinement, and the inability to engage in many of their natural behaviors, including freely stretching their limbs or feeling the earth under their feet. As well, many endure painful physical mutilations such as castration, dehorning, debeaking, and detoeing—all without any anesthesia. Often overcrowded in barren sheds, pens, stalls, and cages, each year billions of farm animals suffer lives of misery.
Factory Farm Fallout
Marks Dairy Farm is just the most recent example of animal agribusiness' lack of concern for the environment. Buckeye Egg Farm, one of the country's largest egg operations, has paid millions of dollars in fines and settled multiple lawsuits with its neighbors, who complained for years about fly and rodent infestations, foul odors, and polluted streams. Neighbors of Ise-America, an egg factory farm in New Jersey, have repeatedly complained about the fly problems generated by keeping more than a million birds and their manure in a single location.
Furthermore, the latent environmental hazards posed by factory farming are exacerbated when a natural disaster strikes. In 1999, North Carolina, a major pork producing state, was struck by two hurricanes in a single week. The wastewater levels in hog lagoons were elevated by Hurricane Dennis and, when Hurricane Floyd hit, widespread flooding led to the dispersal of hog waste, rotting animal carcasses, and pathogens.
In light of the many environmental and public health atrocities caused by factory farms, Marks Dairy Farm's 3 million gallon spill of liquid manure should encourage local, state, and national decision makers to reconsider the value of allowing factory farms to operate. We must all question whether these degradations of the environment and the lives of humans and animals alike are a price we are willing to pay for factory farm products.
See the Video
Hurricane Floyd and Factory Farms
Related Links
About Farm Animals and Factory Farming
Eating for the Environment
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