Falling Behind: Processing and Enforcing Permits for Animal Agriculture Operations in Maryland is Lagging

Center for Progressive Reform Issue Alert No. 1310

U of Maryland Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2014-12

18 Pages Posted: 4 Mar 2014

See all articles by Rena I. Steinzor

Rena I. Steinzor

University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law; Center for Progressive Reform

Anne Havemann

Center for Progressive Reform

Date Written: November 3, 2014

Abstract

After decades of failed interstate agreements, the Chesapeake Bay is choking on too many nutrients. The estuary’s last, best chance of recovery is the Environmental Protection Agency's Total Maximum Daily Load (“TMDL”) program, also known as a pollution diet. To meet this deadline, all polluters, including large animal farms, will need to sharply reduce the pollutants they release into the Bay. The Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) must ensure that each Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation (“CAFO”) has developed a facility-specific permit that details when and where manure is applied to fields and how waste is stored and handled. Then the state needs to make sure the CAFOs follow their plans by conducting regular inspections. This Issue Alert finds that MDE has been unable to issue permits for these major sources of pollution in a timely way. Specifically, the state has not registered nearly 30 percent of regulated animal farms, thus missing out on tens of thousands of pounds of pollution reduction in the Chesapeake Bay.

Keywords: Chesapeake Bay, pollution, administrative law, organizational design, regulatory failure and enforcement, concentrated animal feeding operation

Suggested Citation

Steinzor, Rena I. and Havemann, Anne, Falling Behind: Processing and Enforcing Permits for Animal Agriculture Operations in Maryland is Lagging (November 3, 2014). Center for Progressive Reform Issue Alert No. 1310, U of Maryland Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2014-12, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2402870

Rena I. Steinzor (Contact Author)

University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law ( email )

500 West Baltimore Street
Baltimore, MD 21201-1786
United States

Center for Progressive Reform ( email )

500 West Baltimore Street
Baltimore, MD 21201
United States

Anne Havemann

Center for Progressive Reform ( email )

500 West Baltimore Street
Baltimore, MD 21201
United States

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