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NPPC sues EPA regarding new emissions rules

By DOUG SCHMITZ
Iowa Correspondent

CANAL WINCHESTER, Ohio — The National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) on Jan. 19 filed a federal lawsuit against the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), alleging its new emissions rule violates the due process rights of farmers to successfully comply with the Dec. 18 regulation under the Emergency Planning and Community Right To Know Act (EPCRA).

“In sticking the agricultural community with this unworkable rule, the EPA not only failed to provide any guidance to farmers on compliance with the new regulation or develop an adequate system to handle the volume of reports that would be filed, but it actively engaged in efforts that undermined the ability of farmers to comply with this new, stringent rule,” said Bryan Black, NPPC president and a Canal Winchester, Ohio pork producer.

The EPCRA establishes requirements and a framework to ensure that the EPA, state and local governments, and the private sector will work together to control and, if necessary, respond to releases of hazardous chemicals to the environment.

Under the EPA’s ruling, which became effective on Jan. 21, large concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) with 2,500-head of finishing swine or more would be required to submit mandatory reports to their state and local agencies for operations that emit 100 pounds or more of ammonia and hydrogen sulfide.

Conversely, the ruling exempts smaller livestock and poultry facilities from reporting under the Comprehensive Environmental Response Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA).

Filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, the NPPC’s lawsuit alleged that the EPA told state officials not to accept existing reports and charged state officials with providing false and outdated information on its website regarding filing reports.

As part of the filing process, the EPA would require large livestock farmers to first make phone calls to state and local emergency response authorities, then file a written notification of emission estimates.

Based in Urbandale, Iowa, the NPPC said the EPA failed to issue guidance for complying before the new laws filing deadline, which only gave livestock farmers 30 minutes to receive, read and interpret the guidance, and to develop and file the appropriate emissions report.

In its lawsuit, the NPPC is challenging the EPA’s decision to exclude large livestock operations from the EPCRA agriculture exemption, asking the court to enjoin the EPA from enforcing the rule until the agency develops a system that will allow producers to comply. The EPA said failure to comply could mean a stiff penalty of $25,000 per day.

As a result, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) has been inundated with phone calls from state farmers inquiring about the new ruling.

The IDNR is encouraging large livestock and poultry producers to continue to call and report air releases of ammonia and hydrogen sulfide as required by a new federal rule.

“We’ve had a large response to the new rule from producers and we are working hard to keep up with the volume of calls,” said Kathy Lee with the IDNR’s emergency response section. “We appreciate producers’ patience with us as we continue to catch up on calls. It’s more important to report.”

With about 2,000 livestock or poultry operations that could be required to report, the IDNR said state producers who missed the Jan. 20 reporting deadline should continue to call and not fear a $25,000 fine for late reporting.

The IDNR said the federal requirement would apply only to CAFOs – generally those with more than 2,500 finishing hogs, 700 mature dairy cows or 1,000 cattle. But poultry operations with more than 125,000 broilers or 82,000 layers on dry litter, 30,000 broilers or layers on wet litter, or 55,000 turkeys would also be affected.
The IDNR said Iowa producers must submit a continuous release form to its office within 30 days of calling.

“This announcement by the EPA highlights the potential impact these regulations can have on Iowa’s livestock producers,” said Iowa Agriculture Secretary Bill Northey. “It’s important that they are following the issues and communicating with their producer organizations.”

The IDNR added that state producers who signed the EPA Air Consent Agreement didn’t need to submit reports until a National Air Emissions Monitoring Study (NAEMS) is completed on or about Jan. 1, 2010, while smaller swine operations – those below the 2,500 threshold – would not be required to submit notifications.
Information on how to calculate emissions can be found at: Kansas State & Texas A&M University partnership – http://cafoaq.tamu.edu; Iowa State University – www.extension.iastate.edu/ airquality; and University of Nebraska-Lincoln – http://manure.unl.edu

According to the USDA’s latest Quarterly Hogs & Pigs Report, Iowa still leads the nation in pork production.

1/29/2009