225156 Hidden underground: The impact of concentrated dairy production on groundwater quality and public health in California's Central Valley

Monday, November 8, 2010 : 11:30 AM - 11:45 AM

Elanor Starmer, MS, MALD , Food & Water Watch, San Francisco, CA
California is the nation's top dairy-producing state. Home to 4 million cows that annually produce eight times as much waste as the human population of Los Angeles, the Central Valley is ground zero for dairy-related public health impacts. While a great deal is known about air quality impacts from dairy production, much less is known about impacts on groundwater quality and ensuing public health effects. Ninety percent of Valley communities depend on groundwater as a drinking water source. This presentation will summarize the results of a Food & Water Watch report examining contaminants associated with dairy production and their potential to impact drinking water in Central Valley dairy communities. Using the limited data available through public records requests on nitrate well concentrations and a comprehensive literature review of additional contaminants associated with dairy production, the report examines the influence that the dairy industry has had on state policymaking, resulting in policies that are not protective of public health. The current system foists costs associated with dairy production – including drinking water treatment and healthcare costs – onto nearby communities, which are generally low-income and Latino. This presentation offers a comprehensive look at data that shine a light on the state of groundwater in the Valley's dairy communities. It will also present strategies to improve regulation of this critical drinking water resource and require the dairy industry to improve waste management, curb its use of antibiotics and hormones, and take additional steps to protect the health of dairy communities.

Learning Areas:
Advocacy for health and health education
Environmental health sciences
Public health or related laws, regulations, standards, or guidelines

Learning Objectives:
1. Describe the gaps in public knowledge of groundwater quality in Central Valley dairy communities. 2. Evaluate the state of this resource based on limited data available through public records requests. 3. Discuss the public health impacts related to contaminated groundwater from concentrated dairy production.

Keywords: Food Safety, Water Quality

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am the Western Region Director of Food & Water Watch and am a member of the stakeholder group advising the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board on revisions to its groundwater regulations for dairies so that they are more protective of public health.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.