U-WIRE
By George Green
November 30, 2000
(U-WIRE) LINCOLN, Neb. -- Government officials say a recent flood of dairy cows to Nebraska will not jeopardize the quality of the state's environment.
But an expert in environmental policy says Nebraskans should be concerned with the influx of cows and dung.
In the past three years, 14 dairy operations with an average of 1,500 cows each have moved to Nebraska.
At one operation near Neligh, concerned landowners are suing to stop dairy expansion before waste jeopardizes the water quality of a local stream.
No matter how many cows show up, farmers have to follow state laws protecting the environment, said Dan Borer, dairy division manager for the state Department of Agriculture.
"We want them to know the regulations," he said.
The Department of Agriculture inspects every farm before it begins operating, he said. And the Department of Environmental Quality checks local rivers and streams for traces of pollution, Borer said.
Dennis Heitmann, supervisor of the agriculture section of the Department of Environmental Quality, said every feedlot, whether it houses swine or cows, has to control runoff from the animal waste.
To do this, he said, each farm presents a plan describing how it will dispose of the waste without damaging the surrounding area.
With these precautions in place, Heitmann said, Nebraskans should not worry about waste spoiling their water.
"Properly operated dairies shouldn't hurt the state," he said.
Cow dung, though, has already raised a stink at the operation near Neligh.
A case is pending in county district court that will halt dairy expansion near the East Verdigre Creek.
Landowners fear cow manure will seep into the creek and poison the cold-water trout that live there.
The last day of the trial is Dec. 8, and a decision is expected before the first of the year.
Nebraskans should not be so quick to assume that the new farms are harmless, said Kathy Martin, a civil engineer in Norman, Okla., who specializes in environmental issues.
Martin, who was an expert witness in the Verdigre trial, said Nebraska has several glaring problems with its system to guard the environment.
"If I were a Nebraskan, I would be highly concerned," she said.
Nebraska's environmental laws are vague and general, she said.
The laws are also more lenient and are easier to comply with than laws in other states, she said.
In states such as Oklahoma, regulations explicitly mandate how farms have to guard against environmental disasters, such as waste seeping into streams, she said.
"Nebraska has not specifically defined these areas," she said.
Furthermore, Martin said, the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality "has not embraced the problem" that feedlots pose.
For example, Martin said, she did an independent evaluation of a hog farm in Hayes County that already went through a department inspection.
When she arrrived, Martin said, she found a 39-foot dam in a creek that had been filled with cow manure.
Such an arrangement is not environmentally sound, she said.
Matin also said some members of the Department of Environmental Quality may have conflicts of interest.
Dennis Heitmann, who works for the department, also worked for a committee charged with enticing dairy farmers to come to Nebraska, she said.
Heitmann would not commitment on Martin's allegations.
Several private businesses and government committees have been enticing dairy farmers to come to Nebraska.
They cite Nebraska's low land and feed prices as reasons to relocate to Nebraska, Borer said.
The possibility of an environmental disaster spreads beyond Heitmann's conflict of interests, Martin said.
Martin said she met with the Department of Environmental Quality's board of directors earlier this year to propose changes to Nebraska laws. During this meeting, she said, she felt the board was disregarding the possibility that feedlots might be polluting area streams.
"I was highly disappointed with their attitude," she said.
(C) 1999 Daily Nebraskan via U-WIRE
