A federal court Wednesday ruled in favor of West Virginia poultry farmer Lois Alt in a lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency. The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia ruled that contrary to EPA’s contention – ordinary stormwater from Alt’s farmyard is exempt from National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit requirements.
EPA had threatened Alt with more than 37-thousand dollars in fines each time stormwater came into contact with dust, feathers or small amounts of manure on the ground outside her poultry houses as a result of normal farm operations. Separate fines of more than 37-thousand dollars per day were threatened if Alt failed to apply for a NPDES permit for such stormwater discharges.
The American Farm Bureau Federation and West Virginia Farm Bureau intervened alongside Alt as co-plaintiffs to help resolve the issue for the benefit of other poultry and livestock farmers. Farm Bureau President Bob Stallman says this outcome will benefit thousands of livestock and poultry farmers who run their operations responsibly and shouldn’t have to get a federal permit for ordinary rainwater from their farmyards.