Enviros cheer Michigan Supreme Court upholding tighter permitting rules for factory farms

(Michigan Advance) A Michigan Supreme Court ruling on Wednesday upholding the Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy’s (EGLE) ability to announce stricter permit conditions for concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) than outlined in the department’s formal rules is being celebrated by multiple environmental groups, as well as Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel.

Chief Justice Elizabeth Clement, alongside Justices Richard Bernstein, Megan Cavanagh, Elizabeth Welch and Kyra Harris Bolden, held that EGLE had not violated proper rulemaking when issuing new general permit requirements limiting the amount of phosphorus that can be applied to land and revising setback requirements for where these feeding operations cna apply livestock waste. Justices Brian Zahra and David Viviano dissented.

The Environmental Law and Policy Center released a report earlier this year calling for stricter regulations on CAFOs, examining the various ways these operations contribute to pollution in the state.

With permitted large scale feeding operations producing 17 million more pounds a day than the state’s 10 million person population daily, many dairy and hog feeding operations use liquid manure systems and store untreated waste in liquid form in “lagoons” which are later applied to crop fields as fertilizer. The report notes that this waste often contains components that can be harmful to the environment, including detergents, antibiotics, PFAS and pathogens like E. coli. ...................(more)

https://michiganadvance.com/2024/08/02/enviros-cheer-michigan-supreme-court-upholding-tighter-permitting-rules-for-factory-farms/