Sierra Club v. Maple Ridge Dairy


Background: On February 27, 2002, the Maple Ridge Dairy applied 250,000 gallons of liquid manure on 32 acres of frozen and snow covered ground. The manure ran off the intended spreading site, ponded on a neighbor’s forested property, and then ran off into a tributary of the Big Eau Pleine River in western Marathon County, Wisconsin. The Maple Ridge Dairy is a livestock factory* that is supposed to be regulated by Wisconsin’s DNR.

Photo above shows manure that ran off into a neighbor’s woods. For more photos of the runoff problem caused by Maple Ridge Dairy, visit the Wisconsin Stewardship Network .

We believe that the Maple Ridge Dairy violated the federal Clean Water Act by allowing manure to runoff the field and into a stream, and applying on frozen ground within 200 feet of a stream. As of April 11, 2002, manure was still running of the crop field toward the stream. Additionally, we believe that the facility violated the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act by dumping manure on a frozen field in excess of what the soil needs for fertilizer and allowing it to run off into our public waters.

On behalf of the Sierra Club, on April 12, 2002, MEA filed a 60-day notice of intent to sue the Maple Ridge Dairy for violations of the federal Clean Water Act and Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.

View the 60-day notice of intent [60daynotice.pdf].

Status: On June 10, 2002, the Sierra Club, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR), and Maple Ridge Dairy agreed to settle a lawsuit brought against the Maple Ridge Dairy of Marathon County for a winter manure spreading incident that caused thousands of gallons of manure to pour into tributaries to the Big Eau Pleine River.  

According to the settlement terms, the Maple Ridge Dairy agreed to take several actions to prevent future manure spills and improve water quality in the Big Eau Pleine River, including:

• Paying a total of $51,250 in penalties, forfeitures, supplemental environmental projects, and attorneys’ fees. The facility will pay $28,500 to the North Central Conservancy Trust to buy conservation easements for vegetative buffers on farmland along the Big Eau Pleine River;
  
• Refraining from spreading liquid manure on frozen and snow-covered ground;
  
• Maintaining six months of manure storage capacity; and
  
• Reducing its application of manure to the phosphorus needs of crops in order to prevent polluted runoff.

This settlement is the first of its kind in Wisconsin, and represents the future of citizen enforcement of our environmental laws." 

* See "How Livestock Factories are Regulated" in the Family Farming Campaign section.