Today, Oregon Departments of Agriculture and Environmental Quality released the long-awaited renewal of a permit that regulates how many of the state’s hundreds of factory farms manage their waste. The permit is supposed to be updated every five years. 

Despite calls from environmental groups across the state to strengthen the permit, the final version does not go far enough to protect Oregon’s waterways and fails to require adequate monitoring of the state’s factory farm discharges.

“This permit continues the trend of letting factory farms pollute our water without sufficient oversight,” said Food & Water Watch Legal Director Tarah Heinzen, “Strong state oversight of water pollution is especially critical now, as federal regulators are rolling back longstanding protections. The CAFO permit is a missed opportunity to better protect Oregon’s waters and hold Big Ag accountable.” 

Oregon’s factory farms produce massive quantities of waste that can run off into rivers and streams and seep into groundwater that communities rely on for drinking water. According to Food & Water Watch analysis, in 2022 milk cows on Oregon’s mega-dairies alone produced over four billion pounds of manure — or enough to fill two-and-a-half Olympic swimming pools each day. Eastern Oregon has been experiencing a decades long nitrate groundwater contamination crisis, and CAFOs are a known contributor.  

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