IMPORTANCE
Is livestock manure a hazardous substance or pollutant under the nation’s “Superfund” laws – the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) and the Emergency Planning and Community Right- to-Know Act of 1986 (EPRCA)? Could this make farms on which manure is applied subject to Superfund liability?

BACKGROUND
CERCLA has traditionally been aimed at cleaning old chemical dumps. It was passed in 1980 in response to abandoned waste sites such as Love Canal in New York, Times Beach, Mo., and the “Valley of the Drums” in Kentucky. EPCRA, enacted in 1986, addresses notification requirements when CERCLA hazardous substances are released into the environment, such as releases from pipes onto the ground or from stacks into the air. Recent court cases in Texas and Oklahoma have alleged that livestock manure and its constituents – ammonia, nitrogen and phosphorus compounds – are subject to CERCLA liability. If livestock manure is considered a “hazardous substance,” its release into the environment – even application to land – could give rise to producer liability under CERCLA and require reporting under EPCRA.

NPPC POSITION
NPPC supports legislation to clarify that livestock manure is not considered a hazardous substance or pollutant subject to CERCLA and EPCRA. Federal and state environmental statutes, including the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act, as well as state laws, are sufficient for regulating farm discharges and for cleaning accidental or intentional discharges.

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