She is not convinced that the EPA knows where all the factory farms are located. Kessler said the agency is negotiating with Park Farms and expects the company will apply for permits soon. Park Farms did not return phone calls from The Dispatch. Kessler said he thinks it is rare for large farms to slip through the cracks. The EPA, which has no information about farms unless they are large enough to need a permit, relies on neighbors' complaints and a close working relationship with local conservation districts, he said.
Some farms hide, however, until there is an accident.
A hog farmer in Pike County did not tell the EPA that his farm had expanded to 2,500 hogs from 300 until last August, when a pipe ruptured and dumped an unknown quantity of liquid manure into a nearby creek. Kessler immediately asked the company to apply for a permit. In the past two seasons, the agency has been doing biological and chemical monitoring downstream from Buckeye Egg and some areas in Darke County to gather information about pollution from livestock farms. The results haven't been analyzed. The EPA has failed in efforts to make downstream monitoring a part of the permit requirements for big farms.