MEDIA CONTACTS:
Evan Sheffels, Washington Farm Bureau, esheffels@wsfb.com
Dan Wood, Washington State Dairy Federation, dan@wastatedairy.com
Charlie Tebbutt, Law Offices of Charlie Tebbutt, charlie@tebbuttlaw.com
Crina Hoyer, RE Sources for Sustainable Communities, crinah@re-sources.org, (360) 223-8678
Chris Wilke, Puget Soundkeeper, chris@pugetsoundkeeper.org, (206) 297-7002
Joint Statement on Washington CAFO Permit Appeal Settlement Negotiations
The parties to the appeal of the Washington Department of Ecology’s “Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation General Permit (NPDES and State Waste Discharge Permits),” issued on January 18, 2017, have agreed to enter into settlement negotiations in an attempt to resolve ongoing litigation before the Pollution Control Hearings Board (PCHB).
The agreement signed by the parties temporarily stays the proceedings before the PCHB for a five-month period. All litigation deadlines have been postponed to allow the parties time to reach a mutually agreeable resolution. The hearing date has been pushed back from December 4-8, 2017 to May 21-25, 2018.
The parties to the appeal include Puget Soundkeeper Alliance, Community Association for Restoration of the Environment (CARE), Friends of Toppenish Creek, Sierra Club, Waterkeeper Alliance, Center for Food Safety, and RE Sources for Sustainable Communities, along with the Washington State Dairy Federation, the Washington Farm Bureau, and the Washington State Department of Ecology.
For more information on the CAFO permit please visit: http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/wq/permits/cafo/index.html
