“We began to see the fish show up in the river with sores all over their body. And my son and I started to get the sores on our bodies, the same as the fish,” says Rick Dove, the first Neuse Riverkeeper. He’s talking about when he first started seeing large-scale fish kills on the Neuse back in the 1990’s. Fish kills can largely be traced back to waste coming from CAFOs.

In this episode of CAFOs & Communities, Larry Baldwin, the Crystal Coast Waterkeeper, explains how CAFOs impact the environment. He discusses the impacts on aquatic life, starting with the large scale fish kills Dove talks about.

Produced by Larry Baldwin, Kayla Guilliams, and Laura Bratton in collaboration with Dr. JoAnn Burkholder, Rick Dove, Kemp Burdette, Elsie Herring, and Sherri White-Williamson. Special thanks to Larry Baldwin of Coastal Carolina Riverwatch for making this podcast possible.

Music: Pure Water by Medyn, Thoughts by ANBR,  Aquarius by Spearfisher. Photos by Laura Bratton.

References:
CBS 17, “Hog lagoon contamination just beginning,” 2018. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3HlRv_RWxyA

CDC, “Understanding Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations and Their Impact on Communities,” 2010. https://www.cdc.gov/nceh/ehs/docs/understanding_cafos_nalboh.pdf

MD Sea Grant, “Pfiesteria Update: An Enduring Debate,” 2009. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IAFVC1T0KpU

Riverlaw, “Fish Kills.”  http://www.riverlaw.us/fish-kills/

Sierra Club, “Why are CAFOs bad?” https://www.sierraclub.org/michigan/why-are-cafos-bad

UNC Med TV, “Neuse River,” 2008. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hi2oDDdep04