Waste- Research

"EPA - Stormwater Discharges From Industrial Facilities." U.S. EPA ColdFusion Server. 9 Oct. 2009

“As runoff from rain or snowmelt comes into contact with these activities, it can pick up pollutants and transport them to a nearby storm sewer system or directly to a river, lake, or coastal water.”

What little pollution we create makes a big impact on the environment. Should it be aluminum or glass.

"The Food Issue - An Open Letter to the Next Farmer in Chief - Michael Pollan - NYTimes.com." The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia. 9 Oct. 2009

“But if taking the animals off farms made a certain kind of economic sense, it made no ecological sense whatever: their waste, formerly regarded as a precious source of fertility on the farm, became a pollutant — factory farms are now one of America’s biggest sources of pollution.”

It seems that the things we love most can cause the most harm.

"Factory Farm » Environmental Damage." Factory Farm. 9 Oct. 2009

“The fundamental problem: too much poop. Every animal needs to eat, drink, and eventually eliminate its waste (manure and urine). When thousands of animals are confined in one small area on a factory farm, the waste accumulates very quickly.”

· According to the 1998 National Water Quality Inventory, agricultural sources were responsible for 60% of the pollution in surveyed rivers and streams and 45% of the pollution in surveyed lakes.⁶³

· The EPA warns that “bacteria and viruses such as E. Coli, salmonella and Giardia found in dairy waste can contaminate drinking water and cause acute gastroenteritis and fever, kidney failure, and even death.”⁶⁴

· E. coli and other bacteria can survive in manure for several months.⁶⁵

· The EPA reports that the waste generated by hogs, chicken, and cattle has polluted over 35,000 miles of river and has contaminated groundwater in 17 states.

http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/ad/ad347.pdf

“During the last 2 decades the prevalence of obesity and overweight has increased in the United States (1–3). This is in part due to a shift in the distribution of BMI (BMI, weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared) of the entire population (4). This report presents the changes in mean body weight, height, and BMI for the entire U.S. population from 1960 to 2002.”

http://www.epa.gov/waterscience/guide/feedlots/envimpct.pdf

“According to EPA’s 1996 National Water Quality Inventory, agricultural operations, including animal feeding operations (AFOs), are a significant source of water pollution in the U.S. States estimate that agriculture contributes to the impairment of at least 173,629 river miles, 3,183,159 lake acres, and 2,971 estuary square miles. Twenty-two states reported on the impacts of specific types of agriculture on rivers and streams, attributing 20 percent of the agricultural impairment to intensive animal operations.”

“AFO pollutants can impact surface water, groundwater, air, and soil.”

http://www.public-health.uiowa.edu/ehsrc/CAFOstudy/CAFO_1.pdf

“Progressive declines in lung function over years are documented among CAFO workers.”

“Published, controlled studies of odor experienced by community residents living in proximity to CAFOs are limited to two studies in North Carolina and one in Iowa. The first North Carolina study reported more negative mood states (tension, depression, anger, reduced vigor, fatigue and confusion) among those exposed to CAFO odor compared with control subjects. The second North Carolina study reported increased symptoms of headache, runny nose, sore throat, excessive coughing, diarrhea, burning eyes and reduced quality of life measures among community residents living in proximity to a swine CAFO compared with rural residents not living in proximity to livestock operations.”

“The Iowa study found increases in several symptom clusters, mainly eye and upper respiratory symptoms, among those living within two miles of a swine CAFO compared with rural residents living near minimal livestock production.”