New Bush Rule Eases Pollution Restrictions on Factory Farms

With just months left in office, it seems that President Bush has a fire under his ass to destroy the environment in as many ways as possible before he vacates the White House. The Bush Administration is already rushing to ease endangered species laws so government-approved building projects can move forward; now, we’re hearing that they have made thousands of factory farms exempt from needing permits that limit water pollution. The EPA also decided not to improve controls for bacteria and other pathogens that pose risk to human health and wildlife.

From The Daily Green:

Confined Animal Feeding Lots or CAFOs, as factory farms operations are known, are huge polluters. They create large amounts of waste that doesn’t become fertilizer for farms but often runs off into waterways, contaminating drinking supplies and harming aquatic life. The release says that the EPA estimates that these facilities generate three times more waste than people do nationwide.

According to the NRDC, the new rule:

• Creates a loophole allowing facility operators to avoid permits by claiming they won’t have a discharge.
• Adopts a scheme that allows facilities to avoid certain environmental enforcement. For instance, if an operator certifies that the facility won’t have a discharge, environmental authorities will ignore enforcement action, even if the facility discharges to the nation’s waters.
• Rejects improvements in technology that would reduce harmful bacteria and other pathogens contained in animal waste, missing an opportunity to prevent water pollution and threats to public health.

Maybe this is just an extension of his gleeful “Goodbye from the world’s biggest polluter!” exclamation at the G8 summit – in other words, he’s a little kid willfully trashing the place in disobedience. Congratulations, Bush – you’ll go down in the history book for many things, not the least of which is being the WORST. PRESIDENT. EVER.

Link [The Daily Green]
Photo credit: StoptheMegaDairy.org

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