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Tennessee Dairy Farmer Indicted on Clean Water Act Charges

Release Date: 11/23/2004
Contact Information: John Millett, (202) 564-7842 / [email protected]

(11/23/2004) Milton Beard, owner of the Black Jack Ridge Dairy near the community of Santa Fe, Tenn., was indicted on Nov. 4, in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee in Nashville on two felony and one misdemeanor count of violating the Clean Water Act. The indictment alleges that Beard used both a manmade pipe and a spray irrigation system to discharge waste from his dairy facility onto the grounds of his property. The wastes then allegedly flowed into Lick Creek which empties into the Duck River. Polluting surface waters with animal wastes can make the waters unsafe for drinking and recreational uses, and it can also present a danger to fish and wildlife. The case was investigated by the Nashville Office of EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Office of Inspector General and the FBI with the assistance of the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation and the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. It is being prosecuted by the Environmental Crimes Section of the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Tennessee.