Madison, WI—Today, a group of six Kewaunee County residents represented by Midwest Environmental Advocates (MEA) intervened in a legal dispute between Kinnard Farms—one of the state’s largest concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs)—and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) over the terms of a wastewater permit issued by the Department in March 2022.
Administrative Law Judge Angela Chaput Foy has allowed the group to intervene and participate as a full party in a contested case hearing initiated by Kinnard Farms in April 2022. The intervention marks a new chapter in more than a decade of legal proceedings, during which neighbors of Kinnard Farms have fought to secure their right to clean water.
The original case began in 2012, when a group of neighbors challenged Kinnard Farms’ water pollution permit on the grounds that it wasn’t sufficient to protect their water and the health of their families. In 2014, an administrative law judge agreed with them, finding that Kewaunee County’s drinking water crisis had been caused by “massive regulatory failure.” Kinnard Farms appealed the 2014 decision, setting up a legal battle that continued for seven more years. Despite years of appeals and procedural delays, neighbors of the farm refused to give up, and eventually their case reached the Wisconsin Supreme Court.
In a landmark decision in July 2021, the Supreme Court affirmed the DNR’s authority to protect water quality through the use of certain terms and conditions in wastewater permits. Specifically, the Court ruled that the DNR may limit the number of animals at a facility and require the installation of groundwater monitoring wells when necessary to protect water quality. Having lost the battle over the DNR’s broad authority to protect Wisconsin water resources, Kinnard Farms has changed tactics. They now argue that the specific permit modifications made by the DNR following the Supreme Court decision were “unnecessary, unreasonable and not supported by an adequate factual basis,” a claim that stands in stark contrast to the scientific findings presented by experts in the original case.
“Given the serious and ongoing nature of groundwater contamination in the vicinity of Kinnard Farms, it’s clear the terms and conditions of the permit are both reasonable and necessary. We are confident the permit conditions will be upheld,” said MEA Staff Attorney Adam Voskuil.
“There’s no denying the sensitivity of the region to drinking water contamination and the extent of private well contamination in Kewaunee County. Yet Kinnard Farms has spent more than a decade and an unimaginable amount of money fighting basic measures that would improve the community’s drinking water,” said MEA client and Kewaunee County resident Sue Owen.
“The farm’s owners say they want to be good neighbors, but they continue to use the courts to delay their neighbors’ access to clean water. When will they stop bickering over what—for an operation of their size—is small potatoes and start abiding by the court rulings and reasonable water protection standards?” said MEA client and Kewaunee County resident Jodi Parins.
Midwest Environmental Advocates is a public interest law center that works to defend public rights, protect natural resources, and ensure transparency and accountability in government. Learn more at www.midwestadvocates.org or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/midwestadvocates.
