Environmental groups sue EPA for factory farm air pollution standards

Large-scale hog farming releases numerous toxic chemicals into the air.

     Many people have heard of the massively inhumane conditions in large-scale livestock farms, otherwise known as "factory farms" for their resemblance to industrial modes of production. However, they are less likely to be aware of the effects that these farms can have on their human neighbors. On January 28, a coalition of environmental and animal rights groups announced that they had filed two suits against the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for failing to implement effective air pollution standards for large-scale livestock farms after repeated petitioning.

     In 2009 and 2011, the Environmental Integrity Project and the Humane Society of the United States filed two petitions with the EPA asking the agency to set air quality standards for large-scale livestock farms and classify them as sources of pollution under the Clean Air Act. The EPA failed to respond to either petition, inspiring the lawsuits filed this week.

     For people living near large farms, these regulations would enable them to recover a normal quality of life. The toxic emissions produced by these farms, including ammonia, hydrogen sulfide and methane, occasionally make the air in and around their homes impossible to breathe.

     "When the emissions are at their worst, we have had to leave our home for days at a time," said Sac County, Iowa, resident Rosie Partridge to the Des Moines Register. On the farms surrounding Partridge's home, about 30,000 pigs are kept in a four-mile area.

     If you live in an area with a lot of large-scale factory farming, don't wait for the EPA to tighten air pollution regulations on farms to find relief for yourself and your family. Contact US Air Purifiers today for help finding the best home air purifier for your particular situation.