Premium ContentMouse over Home then click on Premium Content for information.LINCOLN — Waldo Farms, a swine genetics company near DeWitt, Neb., has agreed to pay a $7,500 fine for a state environmental violation.
The Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality accused Waldo Farms of polluting waters on March 16, 2010, according to court records. From then until the end of 2011, the company operated a waste control facility without a permit from the Department of Environmental Quality.
Under a court-approved settlement, Waldo Farms agreed to pay $7,500 of a $37,500 fine. The remaining $30,000 will be waived if the company does not violate environmental regulations for the next six months.
Waldo Farms, established in 1895, is the world's largest breeder of Duroc swine. The family-run business also is well-known for exhibiting at every Nebraska State Fair since 1903.
In other environmental cases this month:
» Dawes County District Court ordered the owner of a septic tank pumping service in Chadron, Neb., to stop doing business until he receives proper state certification. Joseph Applegarth of Chadron has been cleaning and inspecting septic tanks without state certification since 2005. The Environmental Quality Department placed him under a compliance order in 2008. He refused the order, arguing that the law was unconstitutional.
» BS Wash Inc., operator of a livestock trailer wash in Elm Creek, Neb., agreed to a June 30 deadline for building a certified lagoon to capture and store wastewater from the business. Failure to meet the deadline will result in a $30,000 fine.
Contact the writer:
402-473-9587, joe.duggan@owh.com
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