Act Now to Prevent Agricultural Takeover of Clean Water Act Authority

Act Now to Prevent Ag. Takeover of Clean Water Act Authority
Reply-To: info@riversunlimited.org

Greetings!

Imagine this scenario: You live along a stream in rural Ohio, and the stream's aquatic life disappears. You suspect it's been poisoned by runoff from the tank-truck loads of manure, a product of a local factory farm, that you've seen sprayed onto nearby fields. You call the Ohio EPA, only to learn that they no longer have the authority to do anything about it: oversight of factory farms has been transferred to the Ohio Department of Agriculture, an agency charged with promoting agriculture in Ohio. The fox is now guarding the henhouse.

Thanks to new legislation backed by Ohio's powerful agri-business lobbies, the Ohio EPA is about to lose regulatory authority over factory farms.

House Bill 363, which is being fast-tracked through the Ohio General Assembly, takes regulatory authority for discharges by factory farms out of the hands of the Ohio EPA and gives it to the industry-friendly Department of Agriculture.

We must act now.

Please call, write and email your state legislator in opposition to HB 363. Click here to find your legislator and her/his contact info.

You may wish to make the following points:
Factory farms can produce more animal waste than a small city produces human waste, yet the waste is seldom treated and is simply spread on crop fields close to ditches, streams and lakes. The Ohio EPA provides the last remaining bit of credible oversight in these situations.

If the legislation passes, Ohio would be the first state to transfer Clean Water Act authority from an environmental agency to an agriculture agency, breaking apart the national permitting system put in place by the U.S. EPA.

The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, with its years of working with Ohio's waterways - doing research on rivers and streams and administering the Clean Water Act - is the body with the experience, expertise and capability needed to enforce the Clean Water Act.
This bill is politics as usual - a powerful lobby is pushing a bill through the legislature that suits its own bottomline but hurts average Ohioans who rely on clean water and healthy streams.

The Ohio EPA has enforced the Clean Water Act in our state since the Act was adopted 40 years ago. Water quality has improved, and 800 miles of our rivers and streams have been judged to meet the criteria for inclusion in the state scenic rivers system. What are the chances that the Dept. of Agriculture will aspire to continue this improvement?
Ohioans need objective oversight, as algae blooms and dead zones have reappeared in Lake Erie, and aquatic life in some inland lakes and streams has all but disappeared due to agricultural run-off.

The Ohio Department of Agriculture's enforcement of its own regulatory rules - involving the very largest factory farms - has been lacking, with only a few fines leveled in the program's first four years (and two of them were slaps on the rest at $200 and $700). Why should we grant them this last slice of regulatory authority?

Increased pollution could lead to increased water treatment costs, and Ohio's citizens will have to foot the bill.

Thanks for taking action- it's up to us to make sure that Ohio's rivers and streams have a voice as this legislation is considered.


Sincerely,

The Rivers Unlimited Team


http://www.riversunlimited.org/

I will also be contacting my friends and urging them to contact their representative. Thanks, Kolasar.

I just contacted my Rep and sent e-mails to friends I know will follow up.

Help us stop the the fox from guarding the henhouse! Email and call the Senate Agriculture Committee Chair, Senator Schuring, to oppose House Bill 363. The Ohio Senate Agriculture Committee could potentially vote on House Bill 363 tomorrow (Wednesday) morning, transferring Clean Water Act permitting authority of factory farms from Ohio EPA to the Ohio Department of Agriculture.


Background:
The Ohio House passed House Bill 363 on Dec. 1, in favor of transferring Clean Water Act authority to an administrative body whose mission is aligned with the agricultural industry. It is an abdication of responsibility from Ohio EPA, which is legally mandated to protect public health and the environment. It is unprecedented for environmental permitting and enforcement authority to be handed over to an agency that is not charged with the goal of environmental protection.


In Ohio, CAFOs generate over 10.5 million tons of manure per year, with some individual facilities creating more waste than medium-sized cities. Concentrated livestock production leads to concentrated manure production. This can result in manure over-application, where it can easily run off into local rivers and streams, and leach into groundwater.


Our Legislators must consider ODA’s poor track record before handing over authority to regulate water pollution generated by CAFOs. A study by the Environmental Integrity Project reveals ODA's weak enforcement record under the current regulatory program, and a failure to address air and water pollution created by factory farms. Ohioans will continue to suffer severe consequences from factory farm pollution without proper guidelines and enforcement. In light of Ohio Department of Agriculture's weak track record, Ohioans deserve a better equipped agency to protect our drinking water, our quality of life and the state's natural resources.


Please contact the committee chair and members of the committee today. See below for contact information.


Sen. Schuring, R, chairman, ag comm
SD29@senate.state.oh.us
Phone: (614) 466-0626


Bob Gibbs, R, vice-chair
Phone: (614) 466-7505
SD22@senate.state.oh.us


Jason Wilson, D, assistant minority whip
Phone: (614) 466-6508
SD30@maild.sen.state.oh.us


John Carey, R
Phone: (614) 466-8156
SD17@senate.state.oh.us


Keith Faber, R
Phone: (614) 466-7584
SD12@senate.state.oh.us


Karen Gillmor, R
Phone: (614) 466-8049
SD26@senate.state.oh.us


Tim Grendell, R
Phone: (614) 644-7718
SD18@senate.state.oh.us


Sue Morano, D
Phone: (614) 644-7613
SD13@maild.sen.state.oh.us

Remember the passage of issue 2, last month ? Same concept.

The commercial farms have the money & motive to bankroll this bill through the legislative bodies.

Your only relief may be to file a lawsuit blocking the transfer of this authority from the EPA and escalate the issue with environmental organizations like the Sierra club.