The 2019 Farm Act (Senate Bill 315) is making its way through the General Assembly this week. The bill passed the Senate last Monday night (June 17th), and is now in the House. The House Agriculture Committee reviewed the bill this Wednesday afternoon, but a vote was delayed over disagreements among committee members.
While there are many controversial facets of the farm bill, from hemp to agrotourism, regulation of poultry waste has been yet another hot topic in committee discussion.
North Carolina’s poultry industry is massive. Though swine operations get most of the publicity, chickens far outnumber the state’s hogs. As of 2018, there were 515 million birds (more than 50 times the state’s human population) on 4,700 farms. Though these animals produce three and six times more nitrogen and phosphorus than hogs, respectively, our state’s chicken farms receive minimal oversight. As the industry continues to grow, with over 100 farms being added annually over the past few years, there has been great concern in the environmental community about how to best manage waste from poultry operations.
During the Senate Agriculture, Environment, and Natural Resources Committee meeting on Wednesday, June 5th, Sen. Harper Peterson moved to amend the Farm Act in an effort to study the state’s growing industry. The poultry industry uses dry litter as fertilizer, which Peterson argued poses great environmental concerns in regard to processing and distribution. He noted “there is no regulation, oversight, permitting addressing the dry-litter poultry production,” as compared to the swine industry, which is heavily regulated by comparison.
Sen. Peterson’s amendment sought to “direct the environmental review commission to study dry litter and poultry waste,” expressly laying out 11 detailed items for the commission to examine. Namely, the amendment aimed to study the “growth of the poultry industry in the State, including the current location, size, and number of dry litter poultry facilities in the State,” the “location, size, and number of dry litter poultry facilities located in the 500-year floodplain,” the “amount of dry litter poultry waste produced by facilities,” and the many environmental implications that follow.
Sen. Brent Jackson immediately asked the committee to oppose the amendment, saying, “to [his] knowledge, we have not had any issues with poultry in this state … they have done an outstanding job of regulating and maintaining good practice throughout, that [he is] aware of.” Sadly, as is the fate of most environmentally sound initiatives in this Senate, the amendment was shut down.
When opposition to further scientific inquiry and study comes down to personal beliefs and conjecture, something has definitely gone awry with our system. As a farmer himself, and the recipient of a 4% lifetime ranking on NCLCV’s 2018 Legislative Scorecard, this wouldn’t be the first time Sen. Jackson has prioritized industry over environmental and human health.
Hurricane Florence caused more than 4 million poultry deaths, and its flooding caused poultry waste to spill over into nearby streams. As environmental conditions worsen, and we see more disasters like Florence, we must be more proactive in our regulatory process. We do not even know the exact number or location of all the state’s poultry farms, but for now, our legislators are willing to simply let this industry self-regulate. That is not acceptable.
As the Farm Act makes its way through the House, we strongly urge legislators to oppose it for several reasons, including its failure to address poultry waste.
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