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No, it’s not a headline from The Onion. The Wall Street Journal editorial board explains:
Two weeks ago, the Environmental Protection Agency finalized a rule that subjects dairy producers to the Spill Prevention, Control and Countermeasure program, which was created in 1970 to prevent oil discharges in navigable waters or near shorelines. Naturally, it usually applies to oil and natural gas outfits. But the EPA has discovered that milk contains “a percentage of animal fat, which is a non-petroleum oil,” as the agency put it in the Federal Register.
In other words, the EPA thinks the next blowout may happen in rural Vermont or Wisconsin. Other dangerous pollution risks that somehow haven’t made it onto the EPA docket include leaks from maple sugar taps and the vapors at Badger State breweries.
The EPA rule requires farms—as well as places that make cheese, butter, yogurt, ice cream and the like—to prepare and implement an emergency management plan in the event of a milk catastrophe. Among dozens of requirements, farmers must train first responders in cleanup protocol and build “containment facilities” such as dikes or berms to mitigate offshore dairy slicks.
These plans must be in place by November, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture is even running a $3 million program “to help farmers and ranchers comply with on-farm oil spill regulations.” You cannot make this stuff up!!
If the administration truly believes regulating Häagen-Dazs suppliers will help prevent another BP-scale disaster, it’s no wonder a federal judge decided to hold it in contempt this week for is gross mishandling of the Gulf spill response. These dubious decisions reinforce the notion of just how far current regulatory overreach extends.
This is just the latest example of regulatory overreach. EPA knows no limits to intrusion in our lives or the fact that it should be allocating its resources to the risks that produce the largest return to the public. Obviously, the administrator doesn’t understand more bang for the buck.
Spilled milk an EPA disaster. Geeze and they let us drink it ?
What are we supposed to do in our homes when it spills ? Call the hazmat team ?
I pity the small farmers. They have to live with this stuff, not big Ag.
Here's a yahoo link because the OP's link requires registration, so if you don't want to register.
Was that "don't cry over spilled milk" or "never waste an opportunity to regulate spilled milk"?
Break out the haz-mat suits for clean up in the dairy aisle!
Quote:
"The EPA rule requires farms — as well as places that make cheese, butter, yogurt, ice cream and the like — to prepare and implement an emergency management plan in the event of a milk catastrophe. Among dozens of requirements, farmers must train first responders in cleanup protocol and build 'containment facilities' such as dikes or berms to mitigate offshore dairy slicks.
"These plans must be in place by November, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture is even running a $3 million program 'to help farmers and ranchers comply with on-farm oil spill regulations.' You cannot make this stuff up."
Anyone think this might be aimed at hobby farmers and micro-dairies that produce small scale dairy for local consumption? Or maybe mothers nursing their babies in public? Calling La Leche League, haz-mat protocol required for group meetings!
It is stupid stuff like this that gives us all the more reason to drastically de-fund the EPA. Obviously they have too much time and money on their hands if they can dream up regulations like this.
Off-shore milk slicks? Really? Where has this ever happened before?
Watch dairy products increase EVEN MORE than they already have since we have begun selling more and more corn to ethanol production.
This kind of thing is as good as a tax increase. The producers just pass along the cost of these ridiculous rules on to the consumers.
Yes..the EPA is hiring inspectors to inspect farms.
And they will prosecute any farmer that does not comply.
Farms must file emergency management plans (go get mop)
Farmers must train "first responders" (hand mop to responder)
Farmers must build containment facilities (bucket for mop)
Now, if you don't know this, USDA inspectors must have their own washroom facilities on site for where they inspect, be it a slaughterhouse or farm. It has specific building regulations, wall/floor regulations etc. and is for the exclusive use of the USDA inspector.
Do you think the USDA inspectors will share "their" washroom with the EPA inspectors or will a whole new facility need to be built so they can wash their hands after an inspection ??
And you wonder why small farmers are going out of business.
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