News Food | Media Release Center for Food Safety, Kupale Ookala will take megadairy to court for polluting HI waters.
"The residents of Ookala were disappointed that the State Department of Health and Department of Agriculture didn’t take action in 2014 when reports from an investigation clearly showed wrongdoing by the Big Island Dairy.
Our community is standing strong and we want to be in the driver’s seat so we can hold this polluter accountable and protect our community," said Charlene Nishida, member of the community group Kupale Ookala.
Intensive confined animal operations like Big Island Dairy have devastating environmental and human health impacts, and our local communities unfairly must bear the brunt of those harms," said Dr. Ashley Lukens, Director of the Hawai’i Center for Food Safety.
Any unpermitted discharge from Big Island Dairy would violate state and federal water pollution laws.
"The Clean Water Act prohibits Big Island Dairy from releasing animal waste pollution," said Sylvia Wu of the Center for Food Safety and attorney for the groups.
"These laws and regulations are in place to protect our communities and waterways, and it is time for the Big Island Dairy to play by the rules."
"The Clean Water Act provides communities such as Ookala the means to protect themselves.
### Center for Food Safety’s mission is to empower people, support farmers, and protect the earth from the harmful impacts of industrial agriculture.
Twitter: @CFSTrueFood