Terence J. Centner

Unfinished business in the regulation of shale gas production in the United States

With increased drilling for natural gas, toxic chemicals used to fracture wells have been introduced into the environment accompanied by allegations of injuries. This article evaluates laws and regulations governing shale gas production to disclose ideas for offering further protection to people and the environment. The aim of the study is to offer state governments ideas for addressing contractual obligations of drilling operators, discerning health risks, disclosing toxic chemicals, and reporting sufficient information to detect problems and enforce regulations. The discussion suggests opportunities for state regulators to become more supportive of public health through greater oversight of shale gas extraction.

Regulating concentrated animal feeding operations to enhance the environment

Abstract Economies of scale have led to the production of animals at large facilities concentrated in selected regions. Such production is accompanied by environmental problems. In the US, federal and state governments have enacted new legislation and regulatory provisions to respond to problems created by concentrated animal production, with an emphasis on eliminating water pollution. While such efforts may advance environmental quality, a more fundamental issue is whether adequate consideration has been given to the broader issue of what concentrations of animals means for the rural environment. Concentrations of animals use large quantities of antibiotics, reduce landscape diversity, and are accompanied by the loss of native species. To respond to these issues, governments need to devise additional regulatory controls that place production costs on producers and preclude practices denigrating the environment. Regulatory efforts that champion small-scale operations and activities rather than supporting industrial-sized farms through commodity price supports also warrant consideration.

Regulating agricultural contamination of groundwater through strict liability and negligence legislation

Abstract New state and national legislation attempts to limit the liability of agricultural chemical users by emasculating existing strict liability standards and replacing them with negligence standards. The allocation of contamination costs and precaution level between producers and victims of contamination associated with these alternative legislative standards is investigated. The analysis employed is a dynamic game theoretic framework considering moral hazard. Based on this analysis, a new institutional response is recommended to assign property rights based upon propensity and severity of injury and to require victim precaution.

The adoption of best management practices to reduce agricultural water contamination

Abstract Nonpoint source water pollution generated by agricultural production is considered a major environmental issue in the United States and Europe. One strategy in the United States has been to adopt various measures, called best management practices (BMPs), to reduce water pollution. Our research addresses legal institutions and the applied use of BMPs, and discusses compensatory payments to reduce nitrogen fertilization levels. Models employed in Georgia and Baden-Wuerttemberg evaluate institutional constraints of payments to reduce nitrogen usage, penalties for excessive leaching, and financial incentives for meeting minimum mineralized nitrogen levels. By modeling net returns, preferred economic strategies for producers are identified. Results show that while BMPs can reduce agricultural nonpoint contamination, pollution abatement may be costly to producers. Thus, reduced pollution probably will require some type of government intervention.

Agricultural nuisances: qualifying legislative “right-to-farm” protection through qualifying management practices

Abstract New homeowners moving into rural areas may use nuisance law to enjoin objectionable agricultural activities. Such lawsuits may result in financial losses for farmers unable to pursue practices required for their livelihood. In response, all American State legislatures adopted anti-nuisance provisions known as right-to-farm laws. Some of the laws offer so much protection that neighbors challenged them as offending the US Constitution. This paper evaluates legislative provisions incorporating qualifying management practices as an equitable method to respond to nuisance disputes. Anti-nuisance protection is only available to qualifying farmers; neighbors retain the right to stop unreasonable agricultural practices.

Reporting air emissions from animal production activities in the United States

Major releases of airborne ammonia and hydrogen sulfide from the decomposition of animal waste have the American public concerned about the health of persons near farms. Emissions of these hazardous substances are regulated by the US Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) and the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA). Moreover, federal regulatory provisions delineate thresholds for reporting hazardous pollutants being released into the air. In 2008, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) adopted a reporting exemption under which all farms were exempted from reporting air emissions under CERCLA and small farms were exempted under EPCRA. The US EPAs exemption poses questions about whether the rule is contrary to congressional mandates. Environmental and industry groups have challenged this exemption in federal circuit court, and the judiciary will need to decide whether the agency had authority to adopt the rule. To accord protection to humans from hazardous airborne emissions from farms producing livestock, state agencies may want to adopt scientifically-justified ambient air quality standards.

Animal feeding operations: encouraging sustainable nutrient usage rather than restraining and proscribing activities

Abstract Due to storm events, spills and careless practices, nutrients from animal feeding operations have denigrated water quality in the United States. Governments at all levels are taking action to reduce pollution problems from these operations. The numerous legislative and regulatory responses have not been directed at employing nutrients from animal wastes in crop production. Instead, the command and control provisions respond to some of the concerns voiced by the public, but their generalized coverage makes them costly and imposes expenses on producers who are not causing any problems. Governments need to consider alternative strategies that would incorporate a relationship between crop land and the animal wastes from feeding operations to more accurately account for environmental costs from excess nutrients.

Recent government regulations in the United States seek to ensure the effectiveness of antibiotics by limiting their agricultural use.

The development of bacteria resistant to antibiotics is viewed as a medical health threat. Because thousands of people die every year due to antibiotic-resistant bacteria, efforts are underway to reduce antibiotic usage which in turn will reduce the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. In the United States, the use of antibiotics in the production of food animals to enhance animal growth has been identified as contributing to resistance. In 2015, a veterinary feed directive was adopted by the U.S. federal government prohibiting nontherapeutic uses of antibiotics in food animals that should reduce usage. The continued usage of antibiotics by producers for preventing disease may mean the directive is insufficient to reduce nontherapeutic antibiotic administration. This may lead some consumers to seek meat products from animals raised without antibiotics. A governmentally-sponsored labeling program could encourage reduction in antibiotic usage.

Enforce Existing Animal Feeding Operations Regulations to Reduce Pollutants

Animal feeding operations are being targeted as sources of point and nonpoint pollutants. In response to the need to improve water quality, governments and agencies are enacting new regulations proscribing activities to reduce pollutants entering waters. Pursuant to the Clean Water Act, the United States federal government regulates concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) as point sources of pollution. In 2001, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency advanced more stringent regulations for CAFOs despite the fact that approximately80% of the CAFOs have not secured permits as required by federal law. An analysis of enforcement mechanisms and opportunities for greater enforcement suggests that reductions in pollution could come from more effective enforcement. Rather than adopting more regulations for animal feeding operations, governments might direct their resources towards detecting and enforcing existing provisions.

The use of best management practices to respond to externalities from developing shale gas resources

The public is concerned that activities accompanying hydraulic fracturing in the development of shale gas resources are unnecessarily adversely affecting them and the environment and is petitioning elected representatives to take actions to reduce risks. The health risks associated with fracturing chemicals and air pollutants are relatively unknown and constitute the impetus for public concern. An evaluation of state legal and regulatory provisions regarding best management practices discloses that states are not adopting timely regulations to protect people and the environment from activities accompanying hydraulic fracturing. Simultaneously, regulatory policy concerning negative externalities suggests that governments underinvest in the protection of human health and environmental quality. Governments have choices in protecting people from dangers that accompany shale gas development. Due to the risks of injuries and unpaid damages from shale gas development, governmental policies need to evolve to accord people greater health protection.