Latest news with #manure
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
Man bailed over charges of spraying manure on road before Ballymena Pride parade
A 19-year-old man told police he sprayed hen manure over the streets of Ballymena as an 'act of protest' against the town's first Pride parade, a court has heard. Isaac Adams, of Lislaban Road, Cloughmills, appeared before Coleraine Magistrates Court on Monday charged with a number of offences following Saturday's incident. The court was told that the 'prank' has backfired on the farm worker, after he was caught 'red-handed' by police wearing a balaclava and carrying two empty 25-litre jugs, which had contained manure, in the early hours of Saturday morning. He has been charged with criminal damage, possessing a lock knife and causing manure to be deposited on the road. The court heard that Adams admitted filling four or five drums of hen litter waste from his farm and pouring it over the road to disrupt the Pride parade taking place on Saturday afternoon. A number of references were handed into court, including 'six of his elders' from his local church, who said it was 'very much out of character'. A police constable confirmed to the court that on Saturday, June 28, at approximately 2.45am, police were patrolling in the town centre of Ballymena when they came across the defendant. He was found wearing a balaclava, carrying two empty 25-litre jugs, which he stated had contained manure, the court heard. The court was told the defendant admitted he had been spreading the manure over the surrounding roads in order to disrupt the Ballymena Pride parade, which was set to take place later that same day. The defendant was searched, and a lock knife was found in his pocket. He was arrested for criminal damage and possession of a bladed article. Whilst under caution, the defendant freely admitted that he had committed the act in protest against the upcoming parade later that day, the court heard. The court heard he admitted to spreading the waste manure in the town and told police he was not the only person involved. The court was further told Adams admitted to wearing the balaclava to conceal his identity, and he confirmed the manure was a hen litter waste. He said he had filled four or five drums of waste from his own farm, and he described it as a prank. Police opposed bail but said that the defendant does not have any criminal record, that the event has now passed and that another man, who was arrested on Saturday, has been released on police bail. Solicitor for the accused, Stewart Ballentine, told the court that Adams co-operated fully with police and made admissions. 'He indicated that he was foolish and stupid to get involved in this prank, as he describes it, but it obviously backfired on him,' Mr Ballentine said. The police constable agreed that the accused showed remorse. The court was told the accused is a maintenance engineer and works on the family farm and had been wearing work trousers at the time of the incident, which contained the lock knife. 'He's a man who has never been in trouble in life before,' Mr Ballentine added. 'He is in full-time employment. 'It wasn't a slurry tanker as such that was driving up the streets of Ballymena. These were some small canisters with hen manure in them. 'As far as the parade on Saturday was concerned, that was not in any way inconvenienced, and all persons who wished to attend were able to do so.' Photographs of the manure were handed into court. The court was told that it cost the local authority £788.39 to clean up the mess. Mr Ballentine added: 'His mother and father are concerned about this matter. They're both in the body of the court. 'I hand in a reference from his employer. He speaks highly of this young man, and also handed in references from six of his elders at his local church, who also say this is very much out of character. 'This man has never been arrested in his life before. He's had an experience of being detained in custody all over the weekend, and this is totally new to this young man, and hopefully, he will never be back. 'He comes from a very law-abiding stock, a family stock in the North Antrim area, and he's a hard-working young man, and really should have been at other, more productive things than this prank, which badly went wrong. The solicitor, who said his client had 'greatly assisted the police investigation', noted that someone else had been arrested in connection with the incident. 'I wonder what the evidence may or may not be in relation to that matter,' he said. 'But my client was the only man who was actually caught red-handed, so to speak, and he made full admissions right from the outset. 'He was pretty much caught in the headlights of the police vehicle and made full admissions and certainly he has learned, very sadly, lessons from his experiences over the last few days.' The court heard that the incident was organised over messages and phone calls. Adams was granted bail under a number of conditions, including that he reside at an address at Lislaban Road in Cloughmills, not to enter Ballymena, not possess a phone capable of internet access, and remain under curfew between 11pm and 5am. Adams was warned that breaching his bail conditions would not be considered a prank. A 20-year-old man who was also arrested in connection with the incident has been released on police bail pending further inquiries.
Forbes
24-06-2025
- Health
- Forbes
Millions Of Hogs,Millions With No Clean Water, How The EPA Failed Iowa
Example of a hog waste lagoon. This photo is at Hopkins Ridge Farms in Iroquois County, Ill. With 23 ... More million hogs, Iowa produces more manure than any other U.S. state. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty Images) In the heartland of America, Iowa stands as a testament to agricultural prowess, leading the nation in pork production. With approximately 23 million hogs, the state produces an astonishing 109 billion pounds of manure annually. That is 25 times more waste than its human population generates. While this industry bolsters the state's economy, it also presents a significant environmental challenge, safeguarding the water quality for its 3 million residents. There are millions with no clean water. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was established to protect human health and the environment, plays a crucial role in regulating pollutants. However, recent policy shifts and declines in enforcement have raised concerns about the agency's effectiveness, particularly in rural areas like Iowa. Millions With No Clean Water, The Scale of the Problem Iowa's dominance in hog farming is unparalleled. The state's factory farms have seen a 78% increase in waste production over the past two decades. Ninety-five percent of Iowa's counties produce more animal manure than human waste, leading to a concentration of pollutants that threaten local water sources. The impact on water quality is alarming. More than 6,600 private wells in Iowa have nitrate levels exceeding the EPA's safe limit of 10 mg/L, while over 12,300 wells register nitrate levels at or above 5 mg/L. Studies have linked long-term exposure to nitrates, even below federal limits, to increased risks of colorectal, bladder, and ovarian cancers, as well as birth defects. Despite the growing environmental concerns, EPA enforcement actions have declined significantly. Between FY 1999–2000 and FY 2001–2003, enforcement actions against Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) decreased by 52%. In 2016, the EPA conducted only 17 enforcement actions against CAFOs, a stark decrease from previous years. The repercussions extend beyond environmental degradation. Nitrate contamination in U.S. drinking water is estimated to cause up to 12,594 cancer cases annually, with associated healthcare costs reaching $1.5 billion. For rural communities, the financial burden of water treatment and healthcare expenses is substantial, often without adequate support. Stock image of tap water testing. (Photo by Alain BUU/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images) Consequences of Having Millions With No Clean Water The consequences of weakened oversight are not limited to agriculture. In a recent case involving groundwater pollution from coal ash, the Iowa Environmental Council joined other advocacy groups to hold utilities accountable under the Clean Water Act. 'No one is allowed to have uncontrolled discharges of pollution into Iowa's waters, and Alliant Energy is no exception,' said Michael Schmidt, General Counsel for the Iowa Environmental Council. 'The Clean Water Act specifically restricts this type of pollution to protect our waters from dangerous chemicals.' Recent policy overhauls have further complicated the situation. In 2025, the EPA launched significant deregulation efforts, which critics argue have weakened environmental protections and enforcement capabilities. These changes have sparked debates about the agency's commitment to safeguarding rural communities from industrial pollutants. Iowa's reputation as an agricultural powerhouse overshadows the very real pollution and public health challenges posed by inadequate waste management and declining regulatory enforcement. As nitrate contamination threatens the well-being of rural residents, there is an urgent need for policymakers to reimagine the EPA's role in protecting these communities. Ensuring clean water should not be a privilege but a fundamental right for all Americans, regardless of their zip code.
The Guardian
17-06-2025
- General
- The Guardian
Poultry megafarm in Shropshire halted over river pollution concerns
Planning permission for a poultry megafarm in Shropshire has been overturned in a ruling that campaigners have welcomed as a win for rivers. The judgment on Tuesday upheld a judicial review by Dr Alison Caffyn, who argued that Shropshire council had failed to take into account all the environmental impacts of an industrial chicken unit containing 230,000 birds at any one time when it granted planning permission. In particular, she said officials had failed to take into account the impact of spreading manure on land. Mr Justice Fordham in the high court in Cardiff quashed the planning permission. He said in his ruling that the council had failed to lawfully assess the impacts of spreading manure or digestate – a byproduct of the anaerobic digestion of poultry manure – as indirect effects of the development. Fordham also found that the council failed to properly assess the reality of having multiple polluting poultry units in one area, especially in light of the high density of existing large poultry units in the River Severn catchment. Caffyn, who took the judicial review on behalf of campaign group River Action, said the case highlighted systemic failures to account for the environmental toll of having clusters of industrial-scale poultry farms in one area. She said: 'There are nearly 65 chickens for every person in Shropshire and yet the council still thought we needed more.' Emma Dearnaley, River Action's head of legal, said the case was a 'big win for our rivers … The reckless spread of intensive agriculture must end now'. She said the ruling had consequences for other councils who must now take the health of the wider area into account and look at the broader consequences when it comes to agricultural waste. 'No more megafarms without looking at the bigger picture,' she said. The case argued that a rise in large intensive poultry units, known as IPUs, in the valleys of the Rivers Wye and Severn was a key cause of river pollution as chicken droppings contain more phosphates – which starve fish and river plants of oxygen – than any other animal manure. Intensive poultry farming also causes air pollution, submissions to the court say. Sign up to Down to Earth The planet's most important stories. Get all the week's environment news - the good, the bad and the essential after newsletter promotion The counties of Shropshire, Herefordshire and Powys are home to more than 50 million chickens at any one time, and Caffyn, who has researched the scale of IPUs in the area, argued this was placing huge pressures on the Rivers Wye and Severn. Caffyn argued that the increase of industrial-scale poultry farming in Shropshire would inflict a similar ecological disaster on the River Severn as that suffered by the Wye. She said the location of the proposed unit in Shropshire is just 400 metres from an existing one, which appeared to be in breach of government guidelines that say IPUs should not be built within 3km (1.9 miles) of each other because of the biosecurity risks of bird flu spreading between sites. Shropshire council approved the planning permission after the applicants promised they would transfer the manure to a third-party anaerobic digestion unit. But the ruling said the spreading of digestate, which still contains high levels of phosphates and nitrates, had an indirect impact that the council had failed to assess.
