Beginning on Wednesday, from 60,000 to 100,000 livestock and poultry operations will be required to report emissions of ammonia or hydrogen sulfide, said Drovers. The EPA previously exempted livestock farms from filing the reports but a federal court, in response to a lawsuit filed by environmentalists, vitiated the exemption.
Reports are mandatory for farms that release more than 100 pounds of ammonia or hydrogen sulfide in any 24-hour period at least once a year. Producers will be obliged to file reports with the U.S. Coast Guard’s National Response Center and their regional EPA office. The EPA says it should have an email system available by Wednesday for the so-called continuous release notifications as an alternative to calling the Coast Guard.
Two ag groups, the National Pork Producers Council and the U.S. Poultry and Egg Association, filed a court brief last week in support of a delay of the mandate for reports. The NPPC says the appellate court ruling in April applies to all livestock farms. EPA has said that only the large-sized confined animal feeding operations were obliged to report.