Author: Walter G. Wright
The Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement, through its counsel the Environmental Integrity Project, and the Humane Society, through its counsel David E. Sykes ("Groups") have sent a November 20th letter to the Maschhofs, LLC "Maschhofs") that purports to provide a Notice of Intent to file a citizens suit for alleged violations of the Clean Water Act ("CWA"). The November 20th letter states that the Keosauqua Sow Unit ("Unit") is a large concentrated animal feeding operation located adjacent to the Desmoines River in Keosauqua, Iowa. They also allege that the Unit holds nearly 7,500 sows and generates 11,012,598 gallons of swine effluent per year.
The Notice of Intent alleges that there have been systemic failures from two open air waste impoundments resulting in spills onto the land and into one or more tributaries of the Desmoines River. These spills are alleged to have constituted violation of Section 301 of the CWA.
The Notice of Intent also alleges:
Further, upon information and belief, the Keosauqua Sow Unit has not now or in the recent past sought coverage under the Clean Water Act National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System ("NPDES") permitting program. As recently confirmed by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in National Pork Producers Council, et al. v. United States Environmental Protection Agency, "a discharging CAFO has a duty to apply for a [NPDES] permit." Indeed, "a CAFO that has discharged without a permit remains in violation of the Act so long as there is a continuing likelihood that intermittent or sporadic discharges will occur." Therefore, the Keosauqua Sow Unit, an unpermitted discharger, is currently in violation of the CWA, and will remain so until it obtains a CWA NPDES permit.
A copy of the Notice of Intent to Sue can be downloaded below.
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