Why the DMWW lawsuit is critical to winning a Clean Water Iowa
How does the DMWW lawsuit connect to our demand that all factory farms be issued a Clean Water Act permit?
The Des Moines Water Works (DMWW) and Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement both believe that strong regulations are needed to reign in corporate agricultural polluters.
Both the DMWW lawsuit and the Clean Water Act (CWA) permitting demands are necessary to control the release of nitrate pollution into Iowa’s waters.
The goal of the DMWW lawsuit is to name drainage districts in heavily farmed counties as point source polluters that in turn need CWA permits. We believe that under the CWA rule factory farms are also classified as point source polluters and need CWA permits to address corporate ag’s pollution with more than voluntary policies.
Classifying drainage ditch systems to fall under CWA regulation would strengthen our demand that factory farms are also point source polluters and that corporate ag needs to be regulated; specifically requiring that all factory farms are classified as point-source polluters.
The failure of the voluntary Nutrient Reduction Strategy is evident in the extreme nitrate content present in the Raccoon River DMWW sources their water from, as well as statewide. The nitrate levels have risen steadily over the years even since the implementation of the voluntary nutrient reduction strategy in 2012, because voluntary practices that cost money are not going to be enacted by the corporate ag industry; and are not guaranteed to be followed in the future.
Both illustrate how the corporate agriculture industry has been masterful at passing their costs on to the environment, water utility ratepayers, and the general public for far too long. It’s time to end their free ride!
DMWW lawsuit quick facts:
The suit is directed at the Boards of Supervisors of the Sac, Buena Vista, or Calhoun Counties as governing bodies of 10 drainage districts, which are made up of a series of underground pipes designed to drain fields by transporting water, including any pollutants in it, directly to waterways. The suit is not targeting individual farmers.
The primary goal of the suit is to name these drainage districts as point source polluters, the way that a drainage pipe emptying directly into a waterway from a wastewater treatment plan is classified.
Point source polluters require permitting under the federal Clean Water Act (CWA).
If permitted under the CWA these drainage districts would be regulated. Regulation would mean operation and maintenance standards that disallow the release of pollutants and issue strict penalties for non-compliance.
Demand that all factory farms be issued a permit under the CWA quick facts:
It is already federally mandated that point source polluters be issued a CWA permit.
If permitted, a factory farm would have to adhere to regulatory standards. These include, but are not limited to:
Transparency and ability of the public, including the people most affected by the factory farm, to comment on the permit.
Opportunity to comment on the permit renewal every five years, including review of each operation’s manure management practices, which could also declare an update in practices or termination of a permit, equaling a shut-down of the site. A permit could also be terminated if a facility can show it no longer discharges.
Operation and maintenance standards that declare factory farm operators must prevent problems before they become a manure spill.
The permit would impose additional operating requirements, and if the operator doesn’t follow the permit, those acts are also CWA violations. If there’s no permit, they are not. Having a permit would then include annual reporting, regular inspections of lagoons, etc.
Ultimately, we believe every factory farm needs a permit in order to continue operation. Industrial agriculture is Iowa’s largest environmental threat and there is no excuse for their continued free pass on regulation.
Learn more
Why do we want Clean Water Act permits issued to factory farms?
Timeline of how CCI members pushed DNR to come into compliance with the Clean Water Act