North Carolina is second to Georgia as the largest poultry-producing state in the nation and a new report by state environmental officials says the poultry industry produces more animal waste than they expected, says public broadcaster WFDD-FM in Winston-Salem. Not only is it more than officials expected, the nitrogen and phosphorus runoff tops hogs or cattle. In one river basin, the Yadkin-Pee Dee, it was six times more.
Poultry farms generate “dry” litter, which is not regulated the same way as liquid waste from cattle and hogs. Maria Sink of the state Division of Water Resources says, “We have no idea where the poultry farms are” because producers are not required to register or get a permit from the state. Nonetheless, says WFDD, the state is attempting to locate poultry farms and quantify how much waste they produce.
A spokesman for the state Agriculture Department said farmers are moving in the right direction on management of livestock waste and that the state report shows “there were reductions of nitrogen and phosphorus levels in some of the river basins.” WFDD says there’s little political will for new poultry regulations.
In neighboring Tennessee, a bill in the Legislature would exempt most industrial farms from needing the state permits that regulate animal waste disposal, says The Tennesseean. “If it passes, only animal farms that actually pollute groundwater or waterways would be subject to oversight.” The bill would roll back Tennessee regulations so they match federal regulations, says the newspaper.