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Why You Don't Want More CAFOs in Your County

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1. Property Values May Decrease

Near CAFOs Property values of residences may drop up to 40% near factory farms (Colorado State University study of Iowa properties).

 

2. People Living Near CAFOs Experience Health Problems

  • Neighbors living within two miles of a CAFO may experience wheezing, chest tightness, shortness of breath, excessive coughing, nausea, diarrhea, sore throat, eye irritation, headache, runny nose and weakness (UNC).

  • Children who attend schools near CAFOs may suffer higher incidences of asthma (Pediatrics).

  • Neighbors living near a hog confinement may experience more depression, tension, anger, fatigue, and confusion and less vigor (North Carolina study).

  • Factory farms may emit over 200 gases and particulates. Here are just a few that you may breathe in: ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, particulates such as fecal matter and skin cells, volatile organic compounds, methane, and viruses. A 2002 report by Iowa State University and the University of Iowa determined that hydrogen sulfide and ammonia emissions from CAFOs are a health risk for humans.

  • Antibiotic-resistant bacteria (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, known as MRSA) may be found in Iowa hogs and CAFO workers (University of Iowa). MRSA is difficult to treat, can be fatal in people with weakened immune systems, and is becoming more common because of the heavy use of antibiotics on factory farms. Recent studies have found that people near CAFOs or fields receiving manure may experience a higher incidence of MRSA (Johns Hopkins and University of Iowa).

 

3. CAFOs Stink

Confined hogs can generate three times the amount of raw waste as humans (EPA). The liquid manure goes into concrete pits below the confinement where it sits and putrefies for 6-12 months. Huge fans blow air out of the confinements, and residents breathe it in. If you live within 3-4 miles of a CAFO, your air may stink. If you live near a field where manure will be applied, it may stink there, too. Breathing in this air may make you sick.

 

4. Your Quality of Life May Diminish

Many people who live near factory farms report they don’t enjoy their homes any longer. Some experiences people report include, but are not limited to:

  • Not being able to open windows at times to get fresh air into their homes.

  • Some live in basements to get away from the smell that seeps through closed windows.

  • Possible fly infestations. Flies may also contribute to the spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria (UNC).

  • Limiting outdoor entertaining with family and friends.

 

5. Your Community May Deteriorate

Increased traffic from tractor-trailer feed trucks can break down community roads, and local tax money pays for repairs. Fuel taxes typically don’t come close to covering costs. Taxes may rise, and local community services may be reduced to keep up with maintenance (US GAO). You may see businesses close and people move out when factory farms move in.

 

6. The Environment Suffers

Iowa has 723 impaired waterways (DNR). Over 800 manure spills have occurred since 1996 (DNR). Fish kills take place. Children can’t play in many streams without concerns of exposure to E. coli or other bacteria.

References

 

The CAFO: Implications for Rural Economies in the US. Dr. William J. Weida. The Global Resource Action Center for the Environment. (February 24, 2004); Dooho Park. Rural Communities and Animal Feeding Operations, Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Colorado State University, Ft. Collins, CO, 1998.

 

Air Pollution and Odor in Communities Near Industrial Swine Operations. Steve Wing, Rachel Avery Horton and Stephen W. Marshall, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill; Kendall Thu, University of Northern Illinois; Mansoureh Tajik, University of Massachusetts, Lowell;  Leah Schinasi, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; and Susan S. Schiffman, Duke University, 2008.

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2569096/

 

Intensive livestock operations, health, and quality of life among eastern North Carolina residents. Steve Wing and S. Wolf, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, 2000.

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1637983/

 

Asthma symptoms among adolescents attending public schools located near confined swine feeding operations. Pediatrics, 118(1): e66-75. Maria C. Mirabelli, PhD, Steve Wing, PhD, and Stephen Marshall, PhD, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Public Health and Timothy C. Wilcosky, PhD, Environmental Health and Epidemiology Program, RTI International, 2006.

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16818539

 

Malodor as a Trigger of Stress and Negative Mood in Neighbors of Industrial Hog Operations. Rachel Avery Horton, PhD, Steve Wing, PhD, Stephen W. Marshall, PhD, and Kimberly A. Brownley, PhD, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill School of Public Health, 2009.

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2774199/

 

National Burden of Invasive Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Infections, United States. 2011. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta Research and Education Foundation, Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, University of Rochester, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Minnesota Department of Health, California Emerging Infections Program, Connecticut Department of Public Health, Emory University of Medicine, Georgia Emerging Infections Program, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Oregon Health & Science, University, 2013.

http://archinte.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=1738718

 

Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) Strain ST398 Is Present in Midwestern U.S. Swine and Swine Workers. University of Iowa College of Public Health, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, 2009.

www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0004258

 

Almost Three Times the Risk of Carrying MRSA from Living Near a Mega-Farm. Maryn McKenna. Cites a study printed in the February 2014 issue of Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology, 2014. 

www.wired.com/2014/01/mrsa-col-cafo/

 

Putting Meat on the Table. Pew Commission on Industrial Farm Animal Production. A Project of The Pew Charitable Trusts and Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 2009.

www.ncifap.org/_images/PCIFAPFin.pdf

 

Iowa Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations Air Quality Study Final Report, Iowa State University and University of Iowa Study Group, 2002.

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

 

Industrialized Farming and Its Relationship to Community Well-Being: An Update of a 2000 Report by Linda Labao. Office of the Attorney General, State of North Dakota, 2006.

www.und.nodak.edu/org/ndrural/Lobao%20&%20Stofferahn.pdf

 

The Evidence for Property Devaluation Due to the Proximity to CAFOs. Dr. William J. Weida, Department of Economics, The Colorado College, Colorado Springs, CO. 2002.

http://www.sraproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2007/12/theevidenceforpropertydevaluation.pdf

 

Understanding Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations and their Impact on Communities. Carrie Hribar, MA and Mark Schultz, MEd, National Association of Local Boards of Health, Bowling Green, OH, 2010.

www.cdc.gov/nceh/ehs/docs/understanding_cafos_nalboh.pdf

 

Excessive Truck Weight: An Expensive Burden We Can No Longer Afford. U.S. Government Accountability Office study.

http://archive.gao.gov/f0302/109884.pdf

 

Iowa’s 2012 List of Impaired Waters. Iowa Department of Natural Resources. hwww.iowadnr.gov/Portals/idnr/uploads/watermonitoring/impairedwaters/2012/Fact%20Sheet%20for%20final%202012%20list-final.pdf

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