Groups urge EPA to protect rivers from slaughterhouse pollution
93 organizations call for stronger pollution limits for meat and poultry plants
Nearly 100 organizations submitted comments on U.S. EPA's proposed update to pollution standards for meat and poultry processing.
Nearly 100 organizations submitted comments on U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed update to pollution standards for meat and poultry processing. Slaughterhouse and rendering plants release huge volumes of pollution to America’s rivers and streams – including pathogens, oil and grease, and nitrogen, which contributes to toxic algae and dead zones.
EPA is updating these standards for the first time in 20 years. The agency’s own analysis shows that the industry could reduce its water pollution by 322 million pounds per year, just by using currently available pollution control technology.
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Authors
John Rumpler
Clean Water Director and Senior Attorney, Environment America Research & Policy Center
John directs Environment America's efforts to protect our rivers, lakes, streams and drinking water. John’s areas of expertise include lead and other toxic threats to drinking water, factory farms and agribusiness pollution, algal blooms, fracking and the federal Clean Water Act. He previously worked as a staff attorney for Alternatives for Community & Environment and Tobacco Control Resource Center. John lives in Brookline, Massachusetts, with his family, where he enjoys cooking, running, playing tennis, chess and building sandcastles on the beach.
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