EPA Proposes Improved Water Pollution Control Standards for Slaughterhouses and Rendering Facilities
By: Waterkeeper Alliance
Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed new water pollution control standards for slaughterhouses and rendering facilities in response to lawsuits filed in 2019 and 2022 by community and conservation organizations that resulted in this compliance agreement.
The new rules could help prevent at least 100 million pounds per year of water pollution by strengthening or imposing standards on a fraction of the country’s approximately 5,000 slaughterhouses and rendering facilities—a leading source of nitrogen and phosphorus pollution in the United States.
On average, a total of more than 17,000 animals are killed each minute in slaughterhouses across the nation. By-products such as fat, bone, blood, and feathers are often sent to rendering facilities for conversion into tallow, lard, animal meal, and other products. Both processes require a near-constant flow of water and discharge staggering quantities of dangerous and damaging water pollution, including millions of pounds of nitrogen and phosphorus—along with bacteria, grease, and other pollutants—that are received by local wastewater treatment facilities as well as nearby rivers and streams.
“Many publicly owned wastewater treatment plants (POTWs) are not equipped to treat the waste they receive from one or more of the estimated 3,708 indirectly discharging slaughterhouses and rendering plants across the country, likely contributing to 73% of these facilities violating their clean water permit limits for pollutants typically released by those dischargers,” said Kelly Hunter Foster, Senior Attorney, Waterkeeper Alliance. “It is imperative that EPA establish nitrogen, phosphorus, and other pollution limits for these indirect dischargers to ensure that the industry bears its own production costs, rather than polluting or passing the costs on to impacted communities and citizens that simply cannot afford to upgrade their plants.”
Rendering facilities and slaughterhouse water pollution poses significant threats to human health and the environment. Exposure to nitrogen compounds in drinking water has been scientifically linked to an increased risk of health conditions such as colorectal cancer, thyroid disease, birth defects, and—in infants under six months of age—methemoglobinemia, or “blue baby syndrome,” a potentially fatal condition. In addition, nitrogen and phosphorus pollution feeds algal growth, which can render water unsafe for drinking, unfit for recreation, and uninhabitable for aquatic life. As algae die and decompose, they consume oxygen, giving rise to “dead zones” in iconic waterways such as the Chesapeake Bay and the Gulf of Mexico.
This pollution also exacerbates environmental injustice as most of these facilities are located within one mile of populations that, on average, EPA classifies as “low income,” “linguistically isolated,” or at “high risk of exposure to toxic substances.” As an added burden, these facilities are often located near concentrated animal feeding operations and other sources of pollution, which compounds the risks they pose to surrounding communities.
“We are encouraged to see EPA recognize the need to regulate one of the largest industrial sources of nutrient pollution in the country. Pollution from slaughterhouses and rendering facilities harm low-income and communities of color the most,” said Robin Broder, Deputy Director, Waterkeepers Chesapeake. “We look forward to studying the proposed rule to see how it will help people in our communities suffering from the flagrant disregard by slaughterhouses and rendering facilities of the public health harms they have caused.”
The Clean Water Act requires EPA to set water pollution standards for all industries, including an annual review to determine whether updates are appropriate to keep pace with advances in water pollution control technology. Despite this clear mandate, EPA has failed to revise standards for slaughterhouses and rendering facilities for at least 19 years, with some still subject to those established in the mid-1970s. EPA has never published national standards applicable to the vast majority of slaughterhouses and rendering facilities even though the agency has acknowledged for decades that, without adequate pretreatment of the industries’ wastewater, these pollutants pass through many POTWs into our nation’s rivers and streams.
“In the Cape Fear Basin the largest slaughterhouses and rendering facilities discharge waste upstream of the largest drinking water intakes. EPA’s commitment to updating pollution limits for these facilities is long overdue, but welcome, said Kemp Burdette, Cape Fear Riverkeeper. “Strong regulations are essential to protect downstream communities and the environment, and anything less would be a disservice to our region.”
Today’s proposed rule follows two lawsuits brought by Earthjustice and the Environmental Integrity Project on behalf of Cape Fear River Watch, Rural Empowerment Association for Community Help, Waterkeepers Chesapeake, Waterkeeper Alliance, Humane Society of the United States, Food & Water Watch, Environment America, Comite Civico del Valle, Center for Biological Diversity, and Animal Legal Defense Fund.
The group initially challenged the Trump administration’s decision to forgo an update of water pollution control standards for slaughterhouses and rendering facilities in 2019. In response, EPA pledged to strengthen its regulations but did not commit to a timeline. The coalition responded with a second lawsuit in December 2022 to press EPA to act promptly, resulting in an agreement that committed the agency to propose new standards by December 2023 with final standards published by August 2025.
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“Pollution from slaughterhouses and rendering facilities disproportionately harms under-resourced communities, low-income communities, and communities of color,” said Alexis Andiman, Attorney, Earthjustice. “We applaud the EPA for taking action to revise the outdated and under-protective standards governing pollution from these facilities. Together with our partners, we look forward to studying the details of the EPA’s proposal and working to ensure that the final standards adequately protect people and the environment.”
“EPA’s proposed rules are a long overdue, important step for reducing phosphorus, nitrogen, and other water pollution from the slaughterhouse industry that harms human health and the environment, including vulnerable and under-resourced communities,” said Sarah Kula, Staff Attorney, Environmental Integrity Project. “We are evaluating the details of EPA’s proposal and look forward to working with EPA to ensure that any final rules comply with the Clean Water Act and protect downstream communities.”
“Today, the EPA took a major step towards reducing the massive flow of pollution that slaughterhouses dump into America’s rivers,” said John Rumpler, Senior Clean Water Director, Environment America. “If the agency follows through with a strong final rule, it will mark significant progress in reducing threats to wildlife and public health – including toxic algae, pathogens and nitrate contamination of drinking water sources.”
“We are heartened that the EPA has begun the long overdue process of curbing the daily discharge of blood, fat, nitrogen and other pollutants from industrial slaughter and rendering facilities into our waters. Limiting pollution from inhumane factory farming systems will be an important step toward protecting both people and animals, including wildlife impacted by this effluent,” said Rebecca Cary, Special Counsel, Humane Society of the United States.
“Lax regulations allow industrial animal agriculture to profit while burdening communities with pollution and causing animals immense suffering,” said Larissa Liebmann, Senior Staff Attorney, Animal Legal Defense Fund. “With these updated pollution standards, EPA is making slaughterhouses account for some of the costs of their unsustainable business model.”
“We’re happy to see EPA take this long overdue first step towards cleaning up one of the nation’s dirtiest industries. For too long, corporate meat giants have profited off of under-regulated water pollution – often in communities also burdened by those same companies’ factory farms,” said Dani Replogle, Staff Attorney, Food & Water Watch. “We know the meat industry will fight these needed reforms tooth and nail, and we will work to ensure that the final rules are as strong as possible.”