Department of Ecology News Release - Jan. 9, 2001 OLYMPIA - Inspections of 42 livestock farms in Lewis, Thurston and southeast Grays Harbor counties found that most are managing their operations in an environmentally responsible manner, according to the state Department of Ecology. The recent inspection tour was part of ongoing efforts to curtail water pollution from farms in the upper-Chehalis watershed. In 1998, Ecology visited 78 livestock farms (which raise non-milking heifers, cattle, horses, hogs and poultry) in the upper-Chehalis basin and identified 42 that had a medium or high potential to pollute area waters. Those farmers were offered free technical assistance from their local conservation districts to keep their livestock waste from entering waterways. In a return trip to the 42 farms over the past three months, the department found 10 had completed the actions recommended during Ecology's initial visits two years ago; five had taken voluntarily steps toward fixing problems; five were referred to the local conservation district for assistance in preparing farm-management plans; six will require follow-up visits for various reasons (vacations, no animals until spring, etc.); and 14 either no longer had animals or had no problems that needed correction. Two of the farms will be evaluated by the federal Environmental Protection Agency, which had previous involvement with the landowners. "It's great to see that the technical assistance is working," said Mark Bentley, a water-quality manager for Ecology. "We found that there is a lot of voluntary work going on at these farms to protect water quality, and that's really good news for the people, fish and animals that live in the watershed." Between 1990 and 1993, a water-quality study for the upper river (upstream from the Porter bridge) found levels of dissolved oxygen and fecal coliform bacteria that violated state water-quality standards. The study found that portions of the river are very sensitive to pollution and that one significant source of pollution is runoff from areas where livestock is kept. The Ecology Department has separately completed inspections of all dairy farms in the basin under the direction of a 1998 state law aimed at reducing pollution from dairies. Farmers can contact Ecology's Lisa Rozmyn at 360-407-6287 for more information about the inspections and to get technical assistance.
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