Across Maryland’s Eastern Shore, more than 550 concentrated animal feeding operations produce over 300 million chickens each year—and with them, massive waste streams.

According to modeling, these facilities emit 30 to 40 million pounds of ammonia annually, much of it vented into the air, where it later settles into rivers like the Choptank, Pocomoke, and Nanticoke, already impaired by excess nitrogen. An estimated 5 million pounds ultimately reach the Chesapeake Bay each year—more than all of Maryland’s wastewater treatment plants combined, says David Reed of the Chesapeake Legal Alliance.

The challenge isn’t a lack of solutions—it’s a gap in regulation. While statewide CAFO permits address runoff and wastewater, ammonia emissions have largely escaped oversight due to how ventilation systems are classified. That regulatory blind spot sparked legal action and years of litigation aimed at forcing the state to recognize airborne ammonia as a water pollutant under the Clean Water Act.

The path forward, advocates say, doesn’t have to mean endless court battles. Low-cost fixes—like vegetative buffers of trees, shrubs, and grasses placed near poultry house fans—could capture up to 50% of emissions, while collaborative, incentive-based programs could help farmers adopt solutions without bearing the full burden.

Episode at https://youtu.be/rqBulHkdPf8?si=ICdjo8RhnaYYxvSS

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