Montgomery County, MD. Circuit Court Judge Sharon Burrell ruled that the Maryland Department of Environment (MDE) must regulate nitrogen released from broiler growing houses on the Eastern Shore of his State. The case followed a filing by the Assateague Coastal Trust, an environmental activist group, Previously the MDE contended that air emissions should not be regulated under regulations relating to water quality as this would be “onerous for the state as well as for farm operations.” Introducing nitrogen release as a requirement for permitting houses would require extensive recertification.
The issue arose previously in North Carolina in relation to a two-million bird complex located in Hyde County. At the time, the state Department of Environmental Quality ruled that ammonia and dust release from exhaust air from houses had no bearing on water quality.
The ruling by Judge Burrell classified ammonia emitted from broiler houses as a “specific calculable event that the Department is obligated to regulate under the Clean Water Act as delegated to the state.”
Jay Apperson, with the Maryland Department of Environment, noted that State oversight of farms is the most stringent in the country. He stated, “The effectiveness of the Maryland program has been commended by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in its reviews.” He added, “Maryland is also committed to protecting and improving local water quality and restoring the Chesapeake Bay.”
The Delmarva Chicken Association expects the verdict in the Montgomery County Circuit Court to be appealed since it has profound implications for broiler growers operating more than 2,000 houses on the Eastern Shore.