Sen. Teresa Fedor to speak on Lake Erie's Pollution
Type Press Release Information Here
Calling out meat, dairy, and poultry corporations as responsible for the chronic pollution of Lake Erie's waters, Ohio Sen. Teresa Fedor (District 11) says they must stop dumping massive amounts of raw manure on Northwest Ohio's soil.
“Toledo is done being a toilet for millions of animals. We must hold corporate agriculture accountable, require that the phosphorus contained in animal manure be limited to the amount of phosphorous in commercial fertilizer, and continue to organize around this issue so future generations have clean water.”
Sen. Fedor will speak at 7 p.m. Thursday Aug. 12, at the monthly meeting of Lake Erie Waterkeeper, to which the public is welcome to attend in person, online, or by phone.
“As I’ve met with experts in other states, one thing has become clear -- Ohio is falling behind when it comes to addressing nutrient runoff from CAFOs.”
Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) are the standard system for feeding and raising huge numbers of cows, pigs, and poultry in one location. Unlike human waste that must be treated, food-animal manure is untreated when it's dumped on nearby soil. Its runoff seeps into Western Lake Erie where it produces malodorous and sometimes poisonous blankets of green algae covering hundreds of miles.
Another problem occurs as the algae is blown eastward to Central Lake Erie: it disintegrates by depleting oxygen from the lake, which creates a large dead zone in which neither creatures nor plants are able to survive.
The Ohio Department of Agriculture estimates the numbers of confined animals in the Maumee watershed have increased by 88% between 2002 and 2017, and in 2021 more than 70,000 chickens, hogs and dairy cows are being added. Not included are vast numbers of animals not required to be reported for various reasons.
Also discussed will be updates on several other lake issues.
The meeting will begin at 7 p.m. in the Toledo Yacht Club, 3900 N. Summit St., Toledo. To participate online or by phone, and for more information, check http://www.lakeeriewaterkeeper.org
Press Release Contact Name: Tahree Lane
Press Release Contact Email: [email protected]
Press Release Contact Phone: 419-385-2628
Organization Name: Lake Erie Waterkeeper
Website or Link: www.lakeeriewaterkeeper.org
Organization Address / City / State: 3900 N. Summit St., Toledo, OH