MEA Resists Lawsuit from CAFOs
CAFO in northeastern Wisconsin; photo by Mike Bahrke
Midwest Environmental Advocates (MEA), an environmental law firm headquartered in Madison Wisconsin, has successfully petitioned to intervene in a lawsuit over the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources’ (DNR) authority to regulate Wisconsin’s largest livestock facilities. This lawsuit could have a significant impact on Door County waters. Specifically on behalf of their client, Wisconsin Farmers Union, MEA will defend the right of the DNR to require the largest livestock facilities to obtain water pollution permits. In late May, Wisconsin Dairy Alliance and Venture Dairy Cooperative filed a lawsuit over the DNR’s authority to require concentrated animal feeding operators (CAFOs) to apply for permits under the Wisconsin water pollution permitting program. The lawsuit jeopardizes public health and all sectors of the economy, including Door County tourism, quality of life, and our local agriculture that relies on clean water. The lawsuit by these two industrial agricultural groups threatens to eliminate critical oversight of Wisconsin’s largest livestock operations and could lead to more widespread contamination of drinking water and surface water. We already have serious pollution problems with both our surface and ground water in Door and Kewaunee Counties.
On September 12, a Calumet County circuit court judge granted MEA’s motion to intervene in the lawsuit. The motion was filed jointly on behalf of Wisconsin Farmers Union and Clean Wisconsin. Intervention means that MEA’s clients will be able to participate in the case as full parties in the lawsuit. They intend to do their best to make sure that this outrageous attempt to undermine basic quality protections in Wisconsin does not succeed. The Door County Environmental Council fully supports them in this effort.
CAFOs in Wisconsin, and more recently in Door County, have come to represent an increasing percentage of the Wisconsin livestock industry. In 2005 there were 135 permitted CAFOs operating in the state. Today, there are 336, and each CAFO can house thousands of animals and generate more waste than a small city. The big difference is that a city has waste treatment facilities, whereas a CAFO simply spreads the animal waste on the ground. Without DNR oversight, it would be nearly impossible to obtain information about where and how that waste is disposed of.
Although the existing permitting program isn’t perfect, it is a critical tool for protecting our water resources and the health of Wisconsin residents.
The Door County Environmental Council supports responsible agriculture, but we strongly resist facilities that feel they are somehow above the law and have the right to pollute our waters.
By Steve Eatough, DCEC President
This article was taken and adapted from an article written by MEA Staff Attorney, Adam Voskuil and published in the Fall 2023 MEA newsletter.