Air Quality Issues and Animal Agriculture: EPA’s Air Compliance Agreement Page: 6 of 18
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Air Quality Issues and Animal Agriculture: EPA's Air Compliance Agreement
increased federal and state attention to air emissions from AFOs, precipitated in part by structural
changes in animal production and public concern, will likely lead to stricter federal regulation.'
Some livestock operations may also be subject to the release reporting requirements of the
Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA, the
Superfund law) and the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA). The
reporting requirements of these laws are triggered when large quantities of certain substances are
released to the environment, including ambient air. Livestock facilities emit hydrogen sulfide and
ammonia, which are reportable substances under these laws. There has been little enforcement of
these provisions against livestock operations, but in lawsuits brought by citizen groups, federal
courts in two circuits found AFOs in violation of the reporting requirement provisions of the laws.
Applicability of other provisions of CERCLA to agriculture (provisions concerning liability for
costs of cleanup of hazardous substance releases and recovery for damages of releases to natural
resources) also have drawn attention. The net result has been concern by the agriculture
community that other legal actions will be brought, thus potentially exposing more of these
operations to enforcement under federal law.
EPA's Air Compliance Agreement with Industry
Enforcement of applicable provisions of federal environmental laws such as CERCLA, EPRCRA,
and the Clean Air Act (CAA) requires accurate measurement of emissions to determine whether
facilities and operations emit regulated pollutants in quantities that exceed specified thresholds.
Monitoring air emissions from feedlots, waste lagoons, animal confinement buildings, and other
components of livestock facilities is complex and has been controversial. Resolving questions
about AFOs' contribution to total air pollution and corresponding ecological and possible public
health effects is hindered by a lack of adequate, accurate, scientifically credible data on air
emissions. At the same time, increasing public concern about AFO emissions and the possibility
of enforcement actions brought against large AFOs seeking compliance with environmental laws
have led to efforts to gather more and better data.
Early in 2002, representatives of some agriculture industry groups-especially pork and egg
producers-approached EPA officials with a proposal to negotiate a voluntary agreement that
would produce air quality monitoring data on emissions from animal feedlot operations.
Discussions between EPA and the industry groups continued for more than two years and
eventually led to a plan, called the Air Compliance Agreement, that EPA announced in January
2005. It was published in the Federal Register on January 31, 2005, thus triggering a 90-day
period during which AFOs could sign up to participate in the agreement.' The signup period was
subsequently extended to August 12, 2005, in order to provide more time for AFO operators to
make decisions about participation.
The agreement was intended to enable scientists to collect and analyze emissions data and create
tools that AFOs could use to estimate their emissions, for purposes of regulatory compliance,
while at the same time protecting participating AFOs under a "safe harbor" in which EPA granted
6 Jody M. Endres and Margaret Rosso Grossman, "Air Emissions from Animal Feeding Operations: Can State Rules
Help?" Pennsylvania State Environmental Law Review, vol. 13, Fall 2004, p. 5.
7 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, "Animal Feeding Operations Consent Agreement and Final Order," 70
Federal Register 4958, January 31, 2005.Congressional Research Service
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Copeland, Claudia. Air Quality Issues and Animal Agriculture: EPA’s Air Compliance Agreement, report, August 18, 2014; Washington D.C.. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc814716/m1/6/: accessed April 24, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.