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Nebraska Cattlemen welcomes introduction of manure billNebraska Nebraska Cattlemen welcomes the introduction July 18 of S. 3681, legislation that would exempt animal manure from being subject to regulation under the Comprehensive Environmental Response Compensation and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA), also known as the Superfund law. "We appreciate Sen. Hagel and Sen. Nelson being among the 22 co-sponsors supporting this common sense legislation," Nebraska Cattlemen President Pete McClymont said. Identical companion legislation in the House (H.R. 4341) has already gained 174 cosponsors from 40 states, including Nebraska's representatives Tom Osborne, Lee Terry and Jeff Fortenberry. "The point of these bills is to reaffirm that the original Superfund laws do not apply to natural animal waste on farms and ranches," McClymont said. "Unfortunately, S. 3681 and H.R. 4341 are needed to prevent farmers and ranchers from being targeted by activists who would exploit the Superfund laws." He added, "We are in full agreement with our congressional delegates who all recognize that manure has been used as a fertilizer by Nebraska's agriculture producers for more than a century. They know that farmers and ranchers already operate under strict federal and state guidelines regulating water, soil and air quality." The Superfund laws were created to provide for cleanup of toxic waste dumps and hazardous chemical spills, to force reporting of releases of hazardous chemicals and to enable emergency response. By comparison, manure is a natural fertilizer, used in agriculture and especially essential to the organic food industry, clearly not a Superfund concern, McClymont said. The Nebraska Cattlemen association serves as the spokesman for the state's beef cattle industry and represents professional cattle breeders, ranchers and feeders, as well as 46 county and local cattlemen's associations. Its headquarters are in Lincoln and second office in Alliance serves cattlemen in western Nebraska. Date: 7/26/06
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