Oklahoma wants poultry companies to pay $25M in attorney's fees

In addition to requesting that U.S. courts limit poultry litter fertilizer application in the Illinois River watershed to 65 pounds per acre, the state of Oklahoma wants poultry companies to implement watershed remediation, pay civil penalties for alleged pollution since 1993 and pay for the state’s attorney fees, according to the Associated Press.
Oklahoma’s attorney fees total about $25M, according to the state’s attorney general.
Poultry companies should be required to remove all poultry waste from the watershed that exceeds the proposed 65-pound limit, a state said in a filing with the court. It also wants poultry producers to be subject to reporting and monitoring requirements.
Attorneys for the poultry industry said in their filing that restrictions on the use of poultry litter would impose huge economic burdens on both poultry producers and the farmers who use the product as a fertilizer. They said that the state has failed to prove that poultry litter imposes or will impose a “substantiated threat to human health, drinking water, recreational use or wildlife.”
Closing arguments in the case begin February 18.

Judge to hear final arguments in Oklahoma poultry suit

Final arguments in Oklahoma’s pollution lawsuit against poultry companies begin on February 11, Food Safety News reported. The state wants the court to permanently limit the application of poultry litter as fertilizer to no more than 65 pounds per acre and is seeking a ruling before the spring application cycle.
Attorneys for the poultry industry say that U.S. District Court Judge Gregory Frizzell should impose no limits because Oklahoma has not shown a "substantial threat to human health, drinking water, recreational use, or wildlife" posed by poultry litter.
The attorneys represent Cal-Maine Foods Inc., Cargill Inc., Cargill Turkey Production L.L.C., Cobb-Vantress Inc., George's Farms Inc., Peterson Farms Inc., Simmons Foods Inc., Tyson Chicken Inc. and Tyson Poultry Inc.
Oklahoma contends that runoff from fields fertilized with poultry litter have raised phosphorous levels in the Illinois River watershed and led to dropping oxygen levels in Lake Tenkiller.

Oklahoma poultry suit money-losing proposition for state’s law firm

The private law firm representing Oklahoma in its pollution suit against poultry companies will not receive any pay in 2010, according to Drew Edmondson, the state’s attorney general.
The Muskogee Phoenix reported that the state’s agreement with the lawyers specifies that they would be paid out of money awarded to Oklahoma by the court or in a settlement with the poultry companies. However, “Any cause of action where the state could recoup a lot of money or the lawyers could get paid a lot have been removed from the case,” Edmondson told the newspaper’s editorial board.
Edmondson estimated that the firm has accumulated $25 million to $30 million of expenses pursuing the case. He added that he hopes the court will grant an injunction against spring application of chicken litter fertilizer, which Oklahoma claims is polluting the Illinois River watershed and leading to low oxygen levels in Lake Tenkiller.

Former Tyson exec questioned on company priorities

According to reports, Tyson’s former director of environmental agriculture was questioned in court regarding the company's concern about pollution issues, as part of an ongoing trial against several poultry companies brought by the state of Oklahoma.
A state attorney questioned the former Tyson executive, Preston Keller, about a training presentation, which stressed the importance of positive company image. The state asserts the presentation shows the company was more concerned with public relations than preventing pollution flowing into the Illinois River watershed.
The companies maintain no laws were broken as they were issued permits to dispose waste as field fertilizer.

Judge allows pollution reports in poultry trial

The federal judge in the Oklahoma vs. poultry companies lawsuit is allowing government attorneys to submit reports on issues with chicken waste in the Illinois River watershed, according to reports.
Previously, opposing council convinced U.S. District Judge Gregory Frizzell to leave out some of the pollution reports.
Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson argued the poultry companies did not flag the reports as problematic before the trial, whereas attorneys for the poultry companies called the reports political.