The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) determined last week that more restrictive federal wastewater regulations and new cost burdens would be harmful for U.S. meat and poultry processing operations. The agency also concluded that the current system of federal, state and local requirements already in place under the Clean Water Act is working effectively.

On Aug. 30, the EPA issued a decision affirming the current performance of the industry, highlighting that the additional requirements the EPA has been considering would result in significant and unjustified costs and closures of facilities, particularly in rural communities.

The Meat and Poultry Products sector already complies with nationwide effluent standards that limit the pollutants that can be discharged from a poultry or meat processor’s wastewater treatment system.

Comprehensive Review Indicated Extensive Job Losses and Closures Nationwide

EPA has engaged in a comprehensive, multi-year review to determine whether the existing federal effluent limitations for the meat, poultry and rendering industries are sufficiently protective or if additional regulations are necessary. The agency has considered several options with costs for both large and small operations as high as $20 billion in the coming years and facility closures ranging from 74 to 340 across the nation, along with direct job losses ranging from 31,000 to 93,000, based on the industry’s engineering and economic analysis.

Industry stakeholders representing the meat, poultry and rendering community have expressed concern, including the leading trade associations for animal agriculture – the U.S. Poultry & Egg Association (USPOULTRY), Meat Institute, National Pork Producers Council, North American Renderers Association, National Turkey Federation, National Chicken Council, United Egg Producers and the American Farm Bureau Federation.

The industry has worked through several administrations to familiarize EPA officials with both the industry’s wastewater treatment technologies and efficiencies, as well as the unique relationship between processing operations and the local municipal treatment plants that receive and further treat their discharge.

Industry and Local Treatment Authorities Aligned on Keeping Effective Rules in Place

The National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA), representing the nation’s publicly owned treatment works (POTWs), has been strongly aligned with the industry’s position that the pretreatment standards currently in place are effective in protecting human health and the environment.

In comments to the EPA last year, NACWA noted that “pretreatment programs have reached a state of maturity that allows them to understand their own treatment operations and effectively regulate industrial users in their communities through local limits, best management practices or other means – especially in the case of conventional pollutants that POTWs are designed to treat.”

In response to the decision, USPOULTRY President Nath Morris remarked, “We appreciate the EPA’s acknowledgement of our industry’s dedication to properly treat wastewater coming from our plants to a very high standard. The EPA’s final decision signals the agency’s commitment to transparently and thoroughly evaluating regulations for the processing community.”