Dairy group sues state over CAFO rules, changing standards

The Dairy Business Association has filed a lawsuit against the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.

The complaint claims it`s illegal for the DNR to require all concentrated animal feeding operations, or CAFOs, to have an operating permit because it surpasses federal requirements.

"Our dairymen are the most regulated in the country," said Mike North, president of the Dairy Business Association. “We have standards that go beyond what the (Environmental Protection Agency) has set as a standard in the Clean Water bill. And as a result, we are beyond conservation. We do things on our farms that are unheard of elsewhere in the country.”

The lawsuit also claims the DNR is enforcing regulations that have not gone through the formal rulemaking process....