After poisoning children in Michigan, the EPA is now going after low-income farmers with punitive regulatory aggression

Wednesday, February 17, 2016 by: Jennifer Lea Reynolds
Tags: EPA, regulatory bullies, Virginia farmers

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(NaturalNews) First, the residents of Flint, Michigan, were drinking lead-contaminated water, all while Governor Snyder was well aware of water quality issues that ultimately destroyed people's emotional and physical health. Now, another state is in the throes of a government-versus-the-citizens water-related crisis, and the results could destroy farmers' livelihoods.

In a nutshell, the EPA has its sights set on Pendleton County, West Virginia – and not in a good way. There are 540 farms in the area, with each farm averaging a net income of approximately $45,000 annually. The median income in that county is just over $30,000, hardly an amount that exudes wealth. So what does the EPA think is appropriate to do to the people living in a low-income area? Why, take their farm land away, of course!⁽¹⁾

The dire situation is perhaps best summed up in Third Circuit Court information stating that, "It is anticipated that a significant amount of Pendleton county farmland will have to be removed from production due to its proximity to waterways and the resulting impact of the Bay TMDL on local land use."⁽¹⁾

EPA wants total control, even if it disrupts lives

TMDL refers to "total maximum daily loads," and has everything to do with how the EPA wants to have full land use control involving six states and the District of Columbia, all of which are part of the Chesapeake Watershed. Because Pendleton County is located in this watershed, it's unfortunately become the center of debate involving the EPA and the farmers. The EPA wants to alter the waters in the bay (which would strip away the farmer's land and source of income), while the farmers maintain – understandably – that such action would be overstepping laws that were put in place as part of the Clean Water Act.⁽¹⁾

In fact, The American Farm Bureau has even filed a suit against the EPA, stating that the organization simply isn't making sense in this matter. The EPA is simply bypassing people and states that should be more involved in decision-making processes, while latching onto pollution limit standards that only serve to fragment thousands of areas in the watershed. This in turn, would clearly be disruptive to farmers, both emotionally and financially.⁽¹⁾

But tell that to the thousands of EPA employees and the likely response would probably be, "so what?" After all, this large amount of EPA employees don't live in a low-income part of Virginia. Instead, they reside in Arlington County, Virginia, one of the wealthiest counties in the United States. There, the median household income is nearly $95,000, while the median family income is over $127,000. Quite a difference from the $30,000 in Pendleton County, wouldn't you say?⁽¹⁾

Yet the EPA continues to flex its "we've-got-power muscle," much like a bully trying to shove those they deem to be beneath them, aside.

EPA same organization that said fracking produces safe drinking water and lied about glyphosate knowledge

Let's remember that the EPA is the same organization that issued a report about fracking, claiming that it doesn't pose any "widespread, systemic impacts on drinking water." Uh, sure. That's why all kinds of water system damage have been discovered. The report even states that several "potential vulnerabilities" have been identified – but it also notes that those vulnerabilities aren't significant enough to threaten water supplies. Sure, whatever you say.⁽²⁾

And let's also remember that this is the same organization that has known about Monsanto cancer-causing glyphosate ... since the 1970s! That's right, according to Dr. Anthony Samsel – a research scientist and consultant who says he has EPA documents which prove it – for decades the EPA has been hiding the truth about the company's harmful chemicals.⁽³⁾

It simply isn't fair that these farmers – or anyone else for that matter – should have their lives destroyed because of some power and money-hungry folks who don't have a caring bone in their bodies. Climbing the ladder of success isn't about hiding truths, destroying lives and crafting loopholes. It's about helping each other so everyone can live healthy, productive lives, instead of living in fear that the only life they've ever known might one day be forcefully stripped away from them.

See the Health Ranger's breaking announcement about the EPA (and his non-profit effort to test the water from 100+ U.S. cities) at EPAwatch.org.

Sources for this article include:

(1) TheFederalist.com

(2) NaturalNews.com

(3) NaturalNews.com

(4) Science.NaturalNews.com

(5) Science.NaturalNews.com