The National Pork Producers Council (NPPC), along with six state pork producer associations and other national agricultural groups, have filed a legal motion to intervene as parties in challenging the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) water quality standards.
In the lawsuit, Gulf Restoration Network vs. Jackson (EPA administrator), environmental groups Waterkeeper, the Sierra Club and the Natural Resources Defense Council, demand the court order EPA to accept a petition to develop federal nutrient water quality criteria for the 31 states whose waters flow into the Mississippi River Basin.
A watershed-wide Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) for nutrients would also be required.
EPA’s TMDL for the Chesapeake Bay was the product of similar legal action by many of the same groups, says NPPC, and was roundly criticized for its lack of scientific foundation and for singling out the region’s agricultural producers.
NPPC strongly opposes these additional federal regulatory burdens and will continue legal actions to defend U.S. pork producers.