Legislation introduced into the House of Representatives would clarify the exemption of dairy and livestock farms from being subject to the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), which governs the safe disposal of solid waste.
The law had been used to prosecute dairy farms in the Washington state, even though they were following approved plans to use manure as fertilizer. The Farm Regulatory Certainty Act (H.R. 5685) is sponsored by Rep. Dan Newhouse (R., Wash.), and is being endorsed by the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF).
“This legislation would help end the confusion among farmers about environmental regulations, especially those who practice responsible waste management,” says Jim Mulhern, NMPF’s president and CEO. “The RCRA law was not intended to govern farms, and Congress needs to enact this bipartisan legislation to reinforce the point.”