The Journal Gazette, 600 W. Main St., Fort Wayne IN

Spreading fertilizing manure on a frozen field – sort of like spitting into the wind – is an ill-advised activity that’s nearly certain to create problems. But a little spit in the face is nothing compared with the environmental havoc a manure spill can cause.

The recent spill from a confined animal feeding operation in DeKalb County proves the point. It should prompt state environmental officials and other state leaders to consider measures that would help prevent CAFOs from causing environmental damage.

House Bill 1161, proposed by Rep. Phillip Pflum, D-Milton, would have barred confined feeding operations from two miles of a state-managed park or reservoir. It also limited manure application within that boundary. But the bill failed to pass in the House on Thursday.

Large animal feeding operations are not necessarily an environmental enemy. According to officials with the Indiana Department of Environmental Management and neighbors, the owners of Irish Acres, the CAFO responsible for the DeKalb spill, are conscientious. When runoff from a frozen field contaminated the Haverstock Ditch, a tributary of the St. Joseph River, the dairy took responsibility and acted quickly to clean up the mess.

Had the contamination not been addressed promptly, it would have led to serious problems, including a fish kill in the St. Joseph River. IDEM officials took ammonia readings at the manure spill site that went beyond the agency’s field testing capabilities, which max out at 8 parts per million. Ammonia levels should be 2 ppm or lower.

Unfortunately, not all CAFO owners are so responsible. And there are too few regulations on large animal feeding operations to ensure that minimum standards are applied. State legislators should look for reasonable regulations to guide CAFO owners and protect the environment.