March 12, 2011, 12:00 pm
Spilled Milk Regulations a Myth, E.P.A. Says
By JOHN COLLINS RUDOLF
Green: Politics
To Representative Morgan Griffith, a freshman Republican from Virginia, nothing illustrates the Environmental Protection Agencys overreach more clearly than a new rule applying the same regulations that govern spilled oil to milk spilled on dairy farms.
It appears spilt milk is just as threatening as an oil spill, Mr. Griffith wrote in a recent newsletter to his constituents.
<SNIP>
In testimony before Congress on Thursday, Ms. Jackson [Lisa P. Jackson, the E.P.A. chief] declared that the new rule cited by Republicans would, in fact, exempt dairy containers from the regulations that govern oil facilities rules that have been on the books for nearly 40 years.
It was our work with the dairy industry that prompted E.P.A. to develop an exemption and make sure the standards of the law are met in a common-sense way, she said. All of E.P.A.s actions have been to exempt these containers. And we expect this to become final very shortly.
More:
http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/12/spilled-milk-regulations-a-myth-e-p-a-says/
And it was rated False by PolitiFact:
Morgan Griffith says EPA treats milk spills same way as oil spills
Lets review our findings.
Griffith claimed a "new ruling by the EPA would force dairy farmers to comply" with strict regulations for spills and leaks. He said the rules were the same as those enforced on oil and natural gas companies.
In fact, these regulations have been in place for 38 years and are not new at all. The "new ruling" from the EPA, announced in 2009 and taking effect in a few weeks, actually excludes milk from the spill standards, giving dairy farmers fewer regulations to meet. Thats the exact opposite of what Griffith claims.
Sure, Griffith got some of his information from an inaccurate editorial in The Wall Street Journal. But a congressman who is railing against a federal agency has the means to get his facts right.
Griffith is dishing udder cow chips. We rate his statement False.
More:
http://www.politifact.com/virginia/statements/2011/mar/11/morgan-griffith/morgan-griffith-says-epa-treats-milk-spills-same-w/