5-19 IAN Washington Beef vs. EPA 1

 You know it’s amazing how the power of the pen can influence. A recent article in the Idaho Statesmen led with the following words: “A beef slaughterhouse in central Washington has agreed to pay a $750,000 penalty and install $3 million in equipment to resolve allegations that it violated the Clean Water Act. The Justice Department complaint alleged that Washington Beef discharged partially treated slaughterhouse wastes into nearby waterways without a permit and exceeded the level of pollutants allowed by its permit on numerous occasions including fecal matter.Read that and it gives the impression that some irresponsible business is killing cows and dumping manure waste into drinking water. But hold it just a minute.

It’s not quite like that. Here’s Agri Beef Executive Vice President Rick Stott explaining the water treatment: “As it comes out of the plant it gets collected, and then put through a series of 4 or 5 processes for scrubbing and taking out solids and reducing the ammonias and killing the fecal counts and all of those kinds of things before it gets discharged into the slough. It exceeds any other waste water system that exists in that valley.

 After discharge into the slough: It would go through these series of wetlands to reduce more of the solids, to create wildlife to go through reeds and marshes then ultimately go into the irrigation system for the beneficial use of the farmers. So it’s not drinking water or water for bathing babies.  Come on EPA.