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Johanns: EPA’s handling of producer information ‘is a mess’

May 10, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Reports that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency continued to release personal information about livestock operations—even after livestock groups and members of Congress complained about the situation—have raised the ire of Nebraska U.S. Senator Mike Johanns.

In a written statement, Johanns called EPA’s action “at best, woeful negligence and at worst, a flagrant effort to aid organizations seeking to radically transform American agriculture.” 

According to the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, EPA released more records for livestock producers in Nebraska and Montana less than a month after the initial release of records to three environmental activist groups. The initial release of data was in response to a Freedom of Information Act request, but EPA has acknowledged that some of the more private information, including producer names and farm locations, should have been scrubbed before it was released.

Johanns made these comments Wednesday during his weekly conference call with reporters.

AUDIO: Mike Johanns (4:17 MP3)

 

Filed Under: Feature Programs, Rural Issues Tagged With: , , ,

Missouri Right to Farm hits snag

May 9, 2013 By Leave a Comment

In a state where ag industry groups and legislators have successfully fought off animal rights activist measures, legislators are now stalled on a “right to farm” proposal designed to block any future activist threats.

Missouri House and Senate negotiators have advanced a proposed right-to-farm constitutional amendment which would go to the voters next year if passed. The Missouri House passed the measure on Wednesday.  But Senate Sponsor Mike Parsons has been unable to get a final vote and sooner or later, he says, the court system would decide what the right to farm means.

Parsons said, “We’ve tried to talk to corporate lawyers, to attorneys, to judges, everybody we could possibly think to say – ‘What does this mean? Is this good/bad?’ And, at the end of the day you could throw all the answers in a hat and nobody really knows.”

Senate Minority Leader Jolie Justus says she is FOR the right to farm but is opposed to the measure because it removes county control.

Senator Paul LaVota of Independence says he agrees, “Let’s not put something in the constitution that ties the hand of local control that a CAFO or any other type of operation can pollute the land, upset the neighbors, and then hide behind the constitution saying ‘I’m doing farming.’”

Senator Parsons promises to keep trying to advance the right to farm measure. The Missouri legislative session ends next Friday.

~Missourinet contributed to this report~

Filed Under: Livestock, News Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

EPA flyovers come up at Senate hearing

April 29, 2013 By 1 Comment

Nebraska Senator Mike Johanns has been an outspoken critic of the EPA’s use of aerial surveillance to inspect livestock facilities

Johanns resumed his criticism of the flyover program last week during a Senate Appropriations subcommittee hearing in Washington.  He comments were directed at EPA Acting Administrator Bob Perciasepe.

“This is so indiscriminate,” Johanns said.  “You’re flying at low altitudes, you’re flying over law-abiding people who are trying to do everything they can to honor your rules and regulations.  And you’re not coming down on the bad actors—you’re checking on everybody—and it feels terrible.”

Perciasepe told Johanns that the agency is not conducting flyovers at the present time.

“We are in the process of—for the springtime here—of looking at what kind of notification system or other kinds of information we would make available before we actually did any of these flights,” Perciasepe said.

Johanns told the EPA official that it’s an issue of transparency and trust.

AUDIO: Johanns-Perciasepe (6:17 MP3)

Filed Under: Events/Organizations, Livestock, News, USDA/Government Tagged With: , , ,

Johanns continues criticism of EPA flyovers

April 29, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Nebraska Senator Mike Johanns has been an outspoken critic of the EPA’s use of aerial surveillance to inspect livestock facilities

Johanns resumed his criticism of the flyover program last week during a Senate Appropriations subcommittee hearing in Washington.  He comments were directed at EPA Acting Administrator Bob Perciasepe.

AUDIO: Johanns-Perciasepe (6:17 MP3)

 

Filed Under: Feature Programs, Rural Issues Tagged With: , , ,

Nebraska cattlemen press EPA for answers

April 22, 2013 By Leave a Comment

The Nebraska Cattlemen’s (NC) organization is pressing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for answers on the release of personal data on livestock confinement operations to environmental groups.

Leaders of Nebraska Cattlemen discussed their concerns last week with EPA officials in Washington.  But NC director of natural resources and environmental affairs Kristen Hassebrook says they really didn’t learn anything new.

“They didn’t have much of a response, other than ‘Whoops!’—which is disappointing,” says Hassebrook.

Hassebrook says her group is asking for an inquiry into protocols and procedures under the Freedom of Information Act.  “Why were they not followed?  How did this information get out in the first place if it wasn’t supposed to?  Those are the types of issues we’ll be pursuing from here on out.”

Hassebrook says the big issue in the release of the personal data is biosecurity.

“The potential threats against our food supply is something of extreme concern at the federal level and for individual beef producers,” she says, “and so that was our primary concern about creating a national database.”

Earlier this year, the EPA gave out details on concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) to the groups in response to Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests.  The information for ten of the 29 states that were part of the release contained some personal data, including individual names, email addresses, phone numbers, personal addresses and facility names. 

EPA recently admitted that the personal information should not have been disclosed under the FOIA request and asked the environmental groups to return the original information.   Hassebrook says EPA told them the three groups that received the information have returned the original CDs containing the information, as requested, but, “my gut says they probably made a copy or two.”

The ten states are Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Montana, Nebraska, Ohio and Utah.

AUDIO: Kristen Hassebrook (3:08 MP3)

Filed Under: Events/Organizations, Livestock, News, USDA/Government Tagged With: , , ,

Nebraska cattlemen press EPA for answers on data release

April 22, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Leaders of Nebraska Cattlemen were in Washington last week.  One of their stops was the Environmental Protection Agency, where they pressed agency officials for answers on the release of personal data on livestock confinement operations to three environmental groups.

Earlier this year, the EPA gave out details on concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) to the groups in response to Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests.  The information for ten of the 29 states that were part of the release contained some personal data, including individual names, email addresses, phone numbers, personal addresses and facility names.  EPA recently admitted that the personal information should not have been disclosed under the FOIA request and asked the environmental groups to return the original information.   

Brownfield visited with Kristen Hassebrook, director of natural resources and environmental affairs with Nebraska Cattlemen, who was part of the meeting with EPA.

AUDIO: Kristen Hassebrook (3:08 MP3)

Link to previous story on this issue

Filed Under: Feature Programs, Rural Issues Tagged With: , , , ,

NCBA’s reaction to EPA’s data recall

April 11, 2013 By Leave a Comment

A spokesperson for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) tells Brownfield the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) attempt to recall the CAFO (concentrated animal feeding operation) information it provided to environmental groups “is a little too late”.

“From our perspective, the information was released and it’s still going to be out there in the public domain, no matter what the EPA tries to do,” says NCBA deputy environmental counsel Ashley McDonald.

The EPA is asking the three environmental groups to return the information provided to them under the Freedom of Information Act.  The agency says that information for ten of the 29 states that were part of the release contained some personal data, including individual names, email addresses, phone numbers, personal addresses and facility names.  EPA has now determined that the personal information should not have been disclosed under the FOIA request.  

“We’re glad that EPA took a second look and realized that they should not have released all this information that they did.  We’ve been saying that for two months.  So we’re happy that they actually recognized that,” says McDonald. “But again, our position is basically it’s a little bit too late to actually prevent this information from being out in the public domain.  They should have done their job the first time and they just, frankly, did not.”

AUDIO: Ashley McDonald (6:18 MP3)

Filed Under: Feature Programs, Rural Issues Tagged With: , , , , ,

EPA asks groups to return CAFO info

April 9, 2013 By 1 Comment

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is asking three environmental groups to return the information on livestock confinement operations provided to them earlier this year. 

The EPA gave out details on concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) to the groups in response to Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests.  However, in a statement provided to Brownfield on Tuesday, EPA says that because of privacy concerns raised by the ag community, it is now asking the environmental groups to return the original information.   

The agency says that information for ten of the 29 states that were part of the release contained some personal data, including individual names, email addresses, phone numbers, personal addresses and facility names.  EPA has now determined that the personal information should not have been disclosed under the FOIA request.  

EPA says it has redacted the personal information and will provide the organizations with a new set of data.  The groups receiving the information are the Natural Resources Defense Council, EarthJustice and the Pew Charitable Trust.

Here is the EPA statement provided to Brownfield:

EPA’s commitment to working with all stakeholders – the agricultural and environmental communities and our state partners – to ensure clean water and public health protections with regard to the operation of concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) and animal feeding operations (AFOs) requires openness and transparency.  After a recent release by EPA of CAFO- and AFO-related information under a Freedom of Information Act request, the agricultural community raised a number of privacy concerns.  In response, EPA determined that some personal information that could have been protected under FOIA was released. EPA has now redacted that information and asked the FOIA requesters to return the original information. 

Background 

In July 2012, EPA withdrew a proposed rule that would have required CAFOs to submit information to EPA. The Agency indicated it would use existing federal, state and local sources of information instead of a regulation to gather data about CAFOs. Through a collaborative effort since July 2012, states have voluntarily shared with EPA basic information about concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) and animal feeding operations (AFO). This information is production area location, permit status, the number and type of animals, and the number of acres available for land application of manure, litter and wastewater.  This information helps EPA and the states work in partnership to protect water quality and public health under the Clean Water Act. 

Under Freedom of Information Act requests, EPA provided the CAFO and AFO data for 29 states to the Natural Resource Defense Council, The Pew Charitable Trust, and EarthJustice. The majority of the data was already publicly available through state databases, web sites and federal and state permits, or is required to be released under federal or state law. However, in response to privacy concerns raised by agricultural groups, EPA redacted portions of information from 10 of the 29 states that contained some personal data, including individual names, email addresses, phone numbers, personal addresses and facility names that EPA determined was not necessary to disclose under the FOIA request. EPA is providing the organizations with this new version of the data and requesting they return the original data.

Filed Under: Events/Organizations, Livestock, News, Top Stories, USDA/Government Tagged With: , , ,

Senators seek answers from EPA

April 8, 2013 By Leave a Comment

A group of U.S. senators is pressing the EPA for answers on its recent decision to release detailed information on concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) to environmental groups.

Senate Republicans on the Environment and Public Works Committee have sent a letter to the acting EPA administrator asking him to detail steps EPA is taking to investigate the matter.  Specifically, the senators want the agency to examine possible conflicts of interest or what the senators call “inappropriate relationships” between EPA employees and the groups that requested the information.

In February, the EPA disclosed that it had released information on CAFOs to environmental activist organizations through the Freedom of Information Act.  Those groups include the Pew Charitable Trust, Earth Justice and the Natural Resources Defense Council.

Livestock groups have been critical of the action.  They say the information included personal data, including specific locations, addresses and phone numbers.  Kristen Hassebrook of Nebraska Cattlemen tells the Lincoln Journal-Star that what the EPA provided amounts to “a one-stop shopping database” for organizations that might represent a security threat.

Filed Under: Events/Organizations, Livestock, News, USDA/Government Tagged With: , , ,

NCBA: Latest EPA move ‘mind-boggling’

February 20, 2013 By Leave a Comment

The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) is blasting the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for releasing detailed information on Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) to activist groups.

According to NCBA, the information was requested by the groups—including the Pew Charitable Trust, Earth Justice and the Natural Resources Defense Council—through the Freedom of Information Act.  The immediate past president of NCBA, J.D. Alexander, says the fact that EPA granted the request is, in his words, “mind-boggling”. 

“This action by the EPA is actually almost unbelievable,” Alexander says. “I just can’t comprehend their irresponsibility in releasing this information to known ag opposition groups that could pose some very terroristic attacks on our industry.”

In addition to bio-security concerns, Alexander says the release of information makes it much easier for activists to harass farm and ranch families.

“You know, beef producers are usually pretty private people,” he says, “and one of the big things that is of concern is when—I’ll use myself as an example—my name, my address, pertinent things about my private business are out there for known terrorist groups to have access to.”

Alexander points to an incident that took place in California in January of 2012, when an activist group called the Animal Liberation Front used arson to destroy 14 trucks at California’s largest feed yard, Harris Ranch Feedlot of Coalinga.

NCBA says the information released by EPA cover CAFOs in more than 30 states.

Filed Under: Events/Organizations, Livestock, News, USDA/Government Tagged With: , , , , ,
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