Cleaning up the Chesapeake Bay
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Many of us have differing ideas about exactly what ‘local’ means, but I tend to think of ‘local’ as anything within 100 miles of my house. As such, most of Maryland is included - including the Chesapeake Bay. Chesapeake Bay seafood is pretty easy to find, but you have to think twice about whether or not it’s healthy for you. The Bay has a ‘dead zone’ and is on the EPA’s ‘dirty waters’ list.
The Bay is constantly being polluted with excess nitrogen, which is terrible for the health of the Bay. The number one nitrogen polluter of the Bay is agricultural run-off, particularly manure and waste from chicken production. I’m told that chickens outnumber people by just about 1,000 to 1 in the area. Perdue Farms is based in Maryland.
New-ish governor of Maryland, Martin O’Malley, has proposed some new regulations that would finally let the state’s environmental agency police large chicken farms, which would - in turn - improve the quality of water in the Bay (and the quality of the seafood). The regulations would require large chicken farms to get state permits, incorporate pollution controls, and allow inspections, or face some pretty hefty fines. Of course, chicken industry spokespeople aren’t overly thrilled by the idea and say its unnecessary, saying that it might be cost prohibitive to family farmers.
Interestingly, federal law required Maryland to begin policing chicken farm pollution three years ago.
Dairy and pig farms have been regulated in Maryland for years, so it seems like a good idea to regulate poultry farms as well. I have to wonder, though, if it might be more advantageous to require farmers to use more sustainable farming practices, rather than simple pollution prevention methods. Even big corporate farms like Perdue could utilize at least some sustainable practices [like Rumbleway Farm does] without a huge cost, right?
Whatever the case, if this will significantly impact the quality of the Chesapeake Bay (and the food that comes from it), I’m all for it.
