The Environmental Protection Agency has finalized rulemaking to exempt livestock operations from having to report emissions of ammonia and hydrogen sulfide. EPA's move codifies legislation passed by Congress earlier this year after intense lobbying by farm groups concerned that animal feeding and livestock grazing operations would have to comply with emissions requirements under the Superfund law and the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA). The efforts led to the inclusion of Nebraska Republican Senator Deb Fischer’s Fair Agricultural Reporting Method (FARM) Act in the omnibus spending bill passed in March. In a statement, EPA Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler said the move to finalize the exemption provides “regulatory clarity and certainty to farmers and ranchers – hardworking Americans invested in conserving the land and environment.” Before passage of the legislation, EPA had already determined that farms using animal waste in "routine agricultural operations" did not have to report emissions under EPCRA.
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