THE OFFICIALMAGAZINE OF THE NORTH CAROLINA PORKCOUNCIL

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Summer 2020

SPECIAL REPORT of the Truth Matter

With Decades of Experience, Hog Farms Fare Well During Hurricanes. Here’s Why

IG FARMERS IN NORTH Gaston, Ophelia, Alberto, Ernesto, wide-range of actions and adaptations Carolina have seen plenty Barry, Gabrielle, Hanna, Irene, Beryl, have taken place. Hundreds of at-risk of drenching tropical storms Andrea, Arthur, Ana, another Bonnie, anaerobic treatment lagoons have been and powerful hurricanes Colin, Hermine, Julia, Matthew, Florence, closed, no new farms have been built strike the state over the years. Michael and Dorian. and hurricane preparations are now a PHistoric record-breakers Floyd and Indeed, North Carolina has seen at year-round practice. Florence have set the marks for rain and least one storm per year, on average, Long before any storm points toward destruction. But few seem to remember for decades. the state, farmers manage their lagoons the many others. Since 1999, the state The state’s pork producers can to maintain adequate storage capacity has been hit by Gordon, Helene, Allison, confidently say that since Hurricane in the event of a direct strike. When Kyle, Isabel, Alex, Bonnie, Charley, Floyd took many off-guard in 1999, a storms approach, generators and feed

8 | SUMMER 2020 | NC PORK REPORT | NCPORK.ORG What the storm revealed was an industry that embraces common-sense regulation, and one that continuously improves its farming practices with a clear eye on ensuring environmental protections and a sustainable future in the production of safe and affordable food products for a growing population.

are positioned on farms and at key loca- aggressively fundraise. Though the fears the production of safe and affordable food tions across the major hog-producing are later proven completely inflated or products for a growing population. counties. Depending on the forecasted unfounded, the damage to public percep- track, animals are moved to higher tion is already done. THE IMPACT OF ground or to markets early, ensuring Hurricane Florence was a good HURRICANE FLORENCE safety. example. As the powerful storm took The extensive damage caused by Years of experience have led to exten- aim at the coast of North Carolina in Hurricane Florence is well documented, sive planning and preparation for the September 2018, with winds that would and it provides a case study in how truth strong winds, power outages, disrup- exceed 140 mph and record-shattering can be lost in a storm. tions to road networks, flooding and rainfall amounts as deep as a yard stick, Eight trillion gallons of rainwater fell more. All of it is important and neces- activist groups were taking direct aim on North Carolina over a three-day span sary to ensure continuity of a significant at our state’s pig farmers. They gener- in Florence. (That’s 900,000 gallons of part of the nation’s pork supply, and pig ated and spread thousands of articles, water for every pig in the state.) Rivers farmers have won praise for their quick broadcasts and social media and blog swelled to record heights and entire actions that have mitigated harms. posts — predicting, in alarming fash- communities were inundated by flood ion, that the storm would unleash waters. The total damage: $17 billion STORMS OF MISINFORMATION devastation on the environment in the and 48 deaths. It was the costliest and But hurricanes have also brought a region that includes the state’s largest one of the deadliest hurricanes in our different type of challenge for North pig-producing counties. And, many such state’s history. Carolina pig farmers: unfounded attacks groups launched “donate now” cam- No one in eastern North Carolina from activist groups who are opposed to paigns in conjunction with their mis- was spared, including the agriculture modern agriculture. leading communications efforts. community. The damage was profound, In the days leading up to the arrival The director of the North Carolina with more than $1 billion in reported last year of Hurricane Dorian, which Environmental Justice Network, as crop losses. spawned 19 tornadoes in the state, the one example, warned that in the after- But the widespread devastation pre- Associated Press noted that hurricanes math “everything is toppled over and dicted by activist groups never materi- stir up more than winds and rain. dumped out into the environment and alized as it relates to pig farms. Those They spark storms of bad information. into the rivers and streams and just anaerobic lagoons that were the targets “The names of hurricanes may running through the communities, of misinformation campaigns — 98% of change,” the AP reported, “but one thing and so you have all this — nothing but them performed exactly as intended, seems to stay the same: Misinformation feces and urine in the waterways, and suffering little or no damage. spreads quickly.” dead animals.” That’s not to say there were no Without question, that has been the Hurricane Florence delivered a punish- impacts at all involving the state’s 3,300 case for North Carolina farmers. When a ing blow to North Carolina. But, in con- lagoons. Six farms experienced some hurricane is predicted to cross the state, trast to the predictions and in keeping form of structural damage to a contain- activists take advantage of the ability with documented science from previous ment wall in their lagoons, ranging from to exploit unfiltered and unchecked historic storms, pig farms did not unleash a full breach that released liquid con- social media, spreading distortions devastation. Instead, for those who look tents in two cases to other instances of and falsehoods while preying on an closer, what the storm revealed was an a “cracking” in the dike wall or less sig- unknowing mainstream media. The industry that embraces common-sense nificant impacts. In addition, 28 farms activists purposely aim to stoke fears, regulation, and one that continuously had lagoons that filled up with the rain- warning of purportedly dire environ- improves its farming practices with a water to the point that some liquid over- mental threats from pig farms, while clear eye on ensuring environmental flowed, and eight farms saw lagoons at the same time using the moment to protections and a sustainable future in inundated by floodwaters, which means

NCPORK.ORG | NC PORK REPORT | SUMMER 2020 | 9 the flooding came up to, and spilled a diluting effect, which primarily resulted in The Environmental over into, the lagoon. Context, then, lower than normal concentrations of various is crucial. pollutants.” Threat Posed by In each of these cases, it was primar- The truth of the matter is that there Municipal ily rainwater mixed with watered-down remains a disconnect between the Wastewater liquid waste that escaped the lagoons, experts who have conducted evaluations with post-storm inspections showing and the activist groups and mass media, Systems that solids left in the lagoons. which have tended to ignore science or In a briefing to state lawmakers, the offer distortions in advancing political Municipal waste plants often dis- director of the NC Division of Water goals, agendas and outcomes. charge raw human sewage directly Resources emphasized that impacts into the waters of the state, in both from lagoons were minimal, character- LESSONS LEARNED periodic rain events and more izing discharges as consisting of mostly Proactive steps taken by pig farmers help significant storms. It happens water from the storm while also empha- explain why these hurricanes had a lim- year-round in all parts of the state. sizing the enormous amount of rainwa- ited impact. North Carolina farmers face These circumstances are the result ter that fell. the threat of hurricanes nearly every of what are called “sanitary sewer “I am not sure why there is so much year and have learned to prepare well overflows” and/or direct bypasses focus (on animal facilities),” division in advance of hurricane season. That of the treatment system itself. director Jim Gregson told lawmakers in experience has paid dividends many In a hurricane with significant a November 2018 briefing. “Looks bad, times over. rainfall, it is almost a certainty but primarily what you’re seeing on In the months leading up to Hurricane that there will be a discharge from inundated farms is storm water.” Florence, pig farmers were vigilantly pre- some municipal waste systems. This is why, in the aftermath of paring their farms, just as they do every Indeed, more than 120 million gal- Florence, DEQ Secretary Michael Regan year. The summer of 2018 was dry, and lons of municipal waste was dis- said: “We are really focused on our anerobic lagoons were well managed charged into the surface waters (municipal) wastewater treatment facili- heading into the heart of hurricane sea- from 200 municipal systems in ties because there are probably orders son. With ample storage capacity, nearly Hurricane Florence. of magnitude more human waste that all of these lagoons were in position to When Hurricane Dorian hit the has escaped these wastewater treat- withstand the record-breaking floods state in 2019, municipal systems ment facilities than what has escaped that would follow. reported discharging 1.5 million gal- these pig lagoons.” As the storm grew closer, farmers and lons of raw human waste in sewer The NC Department of Environmental the companies they grow for moved more overflows over a five-day period. Quality reported that more than 200 than 20,000 pigs to higher ground for Hog farms saw negligible impacts municipal wastewater treatment plants safety. Hurricane Floyd, nearly 20 years from the storm. spilled approximately 121 million gal- prior, had taught farmers a harsh lesson Indeed, it is not a certainty that lons of sewage into our state’s waterways about the potential for animal mortal- a hog farm lagoon will release any during Hurricane Florence. ity — and farmers responded by taking contents from treatment lagoons Following Hurricane Matthew in 2016, additional precautions on farms located into the waters of the state dur- the Division of Water Resources con- in flood-prone areas. ing a hurricane. By design and ducted extensive monitoring of water- The pork industry embarked on by law, farmers must maintain a ways across eastern North Carolina. Its another major project immediately fol- “freeboard” of roughly 19 inches, conclusion: the hurricane had “minimal lowing Hurricane Floyd to minimize the precisely to protect the struc- and temporary” impacts on water qual- damage from future floods. It worked tural integrity of the lagoon and ity. The report states: closely with the state of North Carolina to absorb significant rain events. “After reviewing the data collected, and to establish the NC Swine Floodplain In practice, lagoons are managed comparing that to precipitation amounts, Buyout Program that would buy — and more conservatively. river levels and known areas of flooding, close — pig farms located in the 100-year Moreover, if a hurricane is so the overall impacts of Hurricane Matthew on floodplain. severe that it is causing impacts surface water quality were initially minimal That commitment to protect the envi- to multiple hog farm lagoons, and temporary, and the long-term effects ronment is already yielding results. public officials and authorities appear to be similar to previous storms Inundation mapping performed by understand that many municipal and long-term historical conditions. While the NC Department of Agriculture plants, affecting large populations many eastern North Carolina areas were and Consumer Services’ Emergency of people, would in those circum- inundated by floodwaters and incidents Programs Division indicates that stances also be experiencing more of spills, breaches or waste facility shut- 75% of those now-closed pig farms difficulty in containing and treating downs were reported, the amount of water would have likely flooded during sub- human waste. discharged into the river basins resulted in sequent hurricanes.

10 | SUMMER 2020 | NC PORK REPORT | NCPORK.ORG More Than 300 Lagoons Have Been Closed

Since a voluntary program was established in 2000, the North Carolina Swine Floodplain Buyout Program has led to the permanent closure of 43 farms and 103 lagoons in four phases over the first 10-years of the program. A fifth phase, with about $5 million in funding, was approved in 2018 and the NC Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services is expected to announce the conservation easements soon. The NC Foundation for Soil and Water Conservation, which includes industry representation, has closed an additional 231 out-of-service lagoons through a separate grant program that removes them permanently. Under the state’s buyout program, participating producers must agree to a permanent conservation easement on the portion of land containing barns and lagoons that are vulnerable to flooding. The property owner has continued rights to the land, and can continue to use it for agricultural purposes, but These photos from the NC Foundation for Soil and Water Conservation not for most animal agriculture activities. show a lagoon (top) prior to permanent closure (bottom). The N.C. Pork Council recognized the effectiveness of the buyout program following Hurricane Matthew and immediately began seeking funding to continue the program, which had not received any new fund- ing since 2007. These decisions are not taken lightly, but demon- strate a commitment to environmental protection. Because of strict regulations, there have been no hog farms built in North Carolina in more than two decades. Under state law, the permits cannot be transferred so any farms that close will mean less pork production benefiting the state’s economy.

Timeline of the lagoon buyout program Phase 1 – 1999 $5.7 million; 17 farms Phase 2 – 2002 $6.1 million; 18 farms Phase 3 – 2004 $3.8 million; 5 farms Phase 4 – 2007 $3 million; 3 farms Phase 5 – 2018 $5 million; TBA

Another significant factor: no new pig responsible preparation, North Carolina in and near population centers and farms have been built in North Carolina, pig farms withstood the powerful along waterways. in flood plains or elsewhere, since 1997. storms remarkably well. Remember, The next time a powerful storm The NC General Assembly enacted a during Florence, more than 98% of the descends on North Carolina, it’s moratorium on new or expanded pig state’s 3,300 anaerobic lagoons per- sure to bring heavy rains and strong farms in 1997 and made it permanent formed exactly as intended with little winds — along with more unsubstanti- ten years later. to no damage. ated accusations about the supposed Reports from state agencies ultimately environmental damage that pig farms FOCUS ON THE FACTS confirmed that pig farms were not a may cause. To the extent those allega- In the aftermath of recent hurricanes, source of serious lasting environmental tions will be reported by the news media, the fears of activist groups did not concern, while there remains growing pig farmers urge caution and common materialize. The evidence showed concern about municipal wastewater sense — because alarmist allegations that, thanks to careful planning and treatment plants due to their location are not true.

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