News Release

For Immediate Release:     May 7, 2002                                  
Contact: Neil Kagan       734-769-3351
         or Anne Woiwode  517-484-2372


Polluting Animal Factories Sued by National Wildlife Federation and Sierra
Club

At the request of concerned local residents, the Michigan offices of the
National Wildlife Federation and the Sierra Club filed lawsuits on Friday,
May 03, 2002, against two animal factories in south central Michigan for
discharging cow manure and other waste into Michigan streams and other
surface waters. The complaints filed in federal court allege that Mericam
Farms in Hillsdale County, also known as Jelsma Dairy, and Hartland Farms in
Lenawee County have repeatedly violated federal and state environmental
laws. As required by the Clean Water Act, the parties notified the two
animal factories on February 6, 2002, that they would be sued if they failed
to address the severe pollution problems their facilities pose.

“Time and again, both the Mericam and Hartland animal factories spread so
much cow manure on the land that it ran off into neighboring streams. They
have been operating without the permits that are necessary to keep our
waters clean and that are required by law,” said Neil Kagan, Senior Counsel
for the National Wildlife Federation. “Those who live nearby and downstream
have had enough. Since these animal factories have not cleaned up their act
voluntarily, we had no choice but to go to court to protect the health of
the local residents and the environment.”

John Klein, President of Environmentally Concerned Citizens of South Central
Michigan and a resident of Hudson, Michigan, said, “Local residents have to
endure polluted water, fouled and unhealthy air, and a general decrease in
the quality of life so that these farms can profit. The people affected are
not against farming—most have been around farms all their lives—they are
against polluting the water and air we all share.”

Over the past two years, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”)
and the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (“DEQ”) have documented
eight separate manure or milking house discharges from Hartland Farms into
surrounding waterways. The DEQ has documented four separate discharges from
Mericam Farms during the past year.

The two animal factories concentrate hundreds of animals in a small area.
They can produce a tremendous amount of waste. As a result of these and
other animal factories, Michigan’s rural communities find themselves
confronting an array of water, air, and public health problems.

“Mericam and Hartland are part of a growing problem posed by animal
factories in Michigan,” said Anne Woiwode, Director of the Michigan Sierra
Club. “There are seven other animal factories in this area, and a new one is
being built near by, all without Clean Water Act permits. Michigan’s lax
protection is putting communities like those in Hillsdale and Lenawee at
serious risk.”

Pressure from public interest organizations and concerned citizens recently
convinced
the DEQ to implement the Clean Water Act by issuing permits to animal
factories, but only after the EPA threatened to revoke DEQ’s authority to
administer the law. Permits would impose enforceable restrictions to prevent
pollution.

“In our experience, the vast majority of farmers are outstanding stewards of
our natural resources. Unfortunately, every industry has a few bad actors.
Until Mericam and Hartland stop contaminating our water ways and start
following the law, instead of ignoring it, clean water and public health
will continue to be at risk,” said Kagan.

The Mericam case was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western
District of Michigan; the Hartland case was filed in the U.S. District Court
for the Eastern District of Michigan.

#########

The nation’s largest member-supported conservation education and advocacy
group, the National Wildlife Federation unites people from all walks of life
to protect nature, wildlife and the world we all share.

The Sierra Club’s campaign to protect America’s water from Concentrated
Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) – one of the organization’s four national
priority campaigns – is committed to keeping factory farm pollution out of
America’s drinking water, lakes and rivers, and eliminating the threats that
CAFOs pose to our public health and rural heritage.


For more information, contact:

Neil Kagan
Senior Counsel
National Wildlife Federation
Great Lakes Natural Resource Center
734-769-3351
[log in to unmask]
Web site: http://www.nwf.org/greatlakes


Anne Woiwode
Director
Sierra Club Mackinac Chapter
517-484-2372
[log in to unmask]
Web site: http://michigan.sierraclub.org/





Erin Jordahl
Director, Iowa Chapter Sierra Club
3839 Merle Hay Road, Suite 280
Des Moines, IA 50310
515-277-8868
[log in to unmask]
[log in to unmask]