Greenwire: After neighbors complained about noxious fumes from a 16.5-acre lagoon filled with chicken waste, local air pollution regulators in Northern California have issued a series of violations against the egg farm that has pumped the feces and urine into the pond.
The waste comes from Olivera Egg Ranch, which has the capacity to hold more than 700,000 chickens. Residents of French Camp, about 80 miles east of San Francisco, say the pond’s foul-smelling fumes give them headaches and nausea.
“My husband and I farmed from sunrise to sunset; we’re out there exposed to the smell and whatever else was out there coming from the Olivera farm,” said Lita Galicinao, who moved into her home near the farm after immigrating from the Philippines in 1954. “It was really hard to work in the heat, plus with the smell, a lot of times you feel nauseated, but that’s our livelihood. We have to go out there and work.”
The San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District found the farm responsible for six violations after multiple complaints from neighbors about the fumes from the lagoon. The most recent petition was filed last month by the Humane Society of the United States, which also sued the egg farm on behalf of 10 local residents.
Edward Olivera, the owner of the egg farm, said he didn’t think the lawsuit had “any solid basis.” He declined to comment on the violations alleged by the air pollution district (AP/MSNBC.com, Feb. 19). – GN