Agriculture
- Animal Feeding Operations |
| Concentrated
animal feeding operations (CAFOs), commonly called factory
farms or megafarms, confine thousands—even millions—of
animals in football field-sized barns. Pollution from
factory farms can pollute groundwater and streams, posing
threats to drinking water. |
 |
The Ohio Environmental Council has consistently
been Ohio’s leading voice—whether before the legislature,
state agencies or in the media—in advocating for better
public health and environmental protections from animal feeding operation
pollution.
Read more:
CAFO Fact Sheet
| How
to Report Industrial Feeding Operation Complaints |
Ohio’s
current factory farm regulatory program involves several
state and local agencies. Which government agency is
responsible for investigating complaints and enforcing
laws can be very confusing. The OEC can help the public ensure that their industrial feeding operation concerns
are directed to the appropriate agency.
Click here to learn how to report a complaint. |
 |
| CAFO Threatens Darby Watershed |
 The Ohio Department of Agriculture is poised to permit the largest dairy in the state to locate in the state’s most pristine watershed.
Some years ago, over 5,000 acres in northwestern Madison County were purchased by Vreba Hoff dairy franchising operation for a future mega-dairy. Those future plans have resulted in a proposed 5,248-head dairy sited a little over 20 miles from downtown Columbus, 13 miles from the city limit, and in the watershed of Ohio’s most protected and preserved watershed – Little Darby Creek. A primary reason the Darby Creek is so pristine is because of the significant public resources that have been invested on limiting land use that would degrade it.
Ohio EPA has studied water quality of the Little Darby in the area and calculated that phosporus levels are already too high from farm runoff to protect the stream and should be reduced by 80%. The over 5,000 cows in this proposed operation would produce tens of millions of gallons of manure and wastewater a year to be spread on the surrounding fields – potentially resulting in increased phosphorous levels. With this vast amount of manure generated and applied to the adjacent farm fields, the equivalent in volume to the waste of over 100,000 people, the potential for increased levels of manure-born nutrients, phosphorus, sediment, and bacteria could lead to the devastation of the Little Darby Creek.
OEC and our member and ally organizations will be working diligently to protect the Darby, and secure greater protections of Ohio’s waterways from animal feeding operation pollution.
Quick Facts on the Little Darby:
- an outstanding state water - in the top 1% scored areas for fish
- home to 35 endangered aquatic species
- a State and National Scenic River
|
