Environmental activists recently suffered a setback as a federal judge dismissed their petition for stricter regulations on large livestock operations, a decision that was welcomed by the U.S. meat industry.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit rejected a lawsuit filed by Food & Water Watch challenging the Environmental Protection Agency’s regulations on concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs).
The lawsuit aimed to force all farms to obtain permits to operate their CAFOs unless they could prove they are not polluting waterways, citing violations of the Clean Water Act.
However, the court sided with the EPA, supporting their approach to regulating livestock production and their efforts to study water quality issues before implementing new regulations.
The court deemed the EPA’s current process as reasonable and compliant with the Clean Water Act.
Pork producers applauded the decision, labeling the lawsuit as “baseless” and emphasizing that any major changes to federal laws should come from Congress rather than through the courts.