Letters Editor
The Courier-Journal
PO Box 740031
Louisville, KY 40201
Cjletter@courier-journal.com
Dear Editor:
Regarding "Sierra Club vows suit over chicken farms and dust they
produce" by James Bruggers (Feb. 5, 2002). Tyson spokesman Ed
Nicholson says there have been no comprehensive scientific studies to
determine exactly how much excretory ammonia is produced and released
in a typical broiler chicken operation, and there are no government
agencies regulating this issue. Lack of government regulation is why
the Sierra Club is taking action. According to the December 2001
issue of WATT PoultryUSA, "[E]veryone connected with the poultry
industry agrees that we have a problem with too much manure." The
"amount of waste product is tremendous and does not even consider the
manure generated by over 270 million turkeys and 330 million laying
hens" (p. 60). The amount cited is one ton of manure per thousand
birds.
The uric acid (a nitrogen product) in chicken manure is the source of
ammonia gases that are released into the atmosphere during
decomposition. Concentration of chicken droppings causes a toxicity
that would not otherwise exist. And studies have been done. The
American Society of Agricultural Engineers published a number of
scientific papers in the1980s identifying the parts per million of
ammonia concentration in an average chicken house holding 20,000
birds as climbing as high as 200 ppm during the winter. 25 ppm is an
innately harmful level for both humans and birds.
There are many scientific papers on the effects of ammonia in poultry
houses, because ammonia is an economic problem (it increases bird
mortality, impairs birds' immune systems, etc.), as well as an animal
welfare problem: birds develop ammonia burned eyes, throats, and
breasts. It poses a risk to human health as well, which is also
documented.
Sincerely,
Karen Davis, PhD
President
United Poultry Concerns is a nonprofit organization promoting the
compassionate and respectful treatment of domestic fowl. For more
information, visit www.UPC-online.org..
United Poultry Concerns, Inc.
PO Box 150
Machipongo, VA 23405-0150
757-678-7875
FAX: 757-678-5070
www.upc-online.org
(UPC Letter Re:Suit Over Chicken Farms)
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