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Court upholds EPA plan for Chesapeake Bay

A federal appeals court has upheld the EPA’s water clean-up plan for the Chesapeake Bay, a plan opposed by a number of national agriculture groups. The court says the agency was acting within its legal authority when setting the Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) on pollutants a body of water can hold and still meet quality standards.

So far, the American Farm Bureau Federation, the National Chicken Council, National Pork Producers Council (NPPC), National Corn Growers Association, were among the plaintiffs. There are deep concerns in the Midwest that the ruling will have a negative impact on agriculture beyond the Chesapeake Bay.

NPPC Chief Environmental Counsel Michael Formica tells Brownfield the ruling “is disappointing and there’s nothing else to say.”