(PatriotPostNews.com) – A recent investigation revealed that Tyson Foods polluted waterways in the United States with toxic materials.
Over the past five years, the food manufacturer directly inserted millions of pounds of chemicals into rivers and lakes across the country that threatened both animals and humans. The information was revealed in newly published research conducted by the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS).
According to the report, 371 million pounds of chemicals were released into American rivers and lakes between 2018 and 2022. The pollutants—which included chloride, cyanide, nitrogen, oil, and phosphorus—were expelled by only 41 slaughterhouses and processing facilities of Tyson Foods.
87 billion gallons of wastewater was contaminated by the chemicals from the company. The wastewater was already impacted by bacteria, animal feces, and blood in addition to the chemicals, all of which was then directly released into rivers, streams, and lakes that are used by citizens for fishing and drinking water. The data from the UCS was gathered from statistics of water pollution that Tyson is mandated to report.
A map was created by the organization after the release of its report, detailing precisely where the pollution occurred. 17 different states were impacted by the pollution from Tyson, but up to half of the chemicals were deposited into waterways in Illinois, Nebraska, and Missouri.
Other impacted states include Iowa, Arkansas, Alabama, Oklahoma, and Virginia. Nitrogen and phosphorus are already present in the Midwest due to industrial agriculture, including synthetic fertilizers and factory farms. These approaches negatively impact water, physical conditions like asthma, and pose a deadly threat to marine wildlife.
According to federal regulations for American meat processing facilities, there is currently no limit on the use of phosphorus and most plants are not required to adhere to water guidelines. Meanwhile, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is determining whether to adopt new regulations that should protect water or go with less sustainable standards that would instead benefit the meat processing businesses.
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