North Carolina Environmental Agency to Step Up Pollution Violation Investigations

North Carolina’s environmental agency is revising internal policies after complaints the agency under former Republican Gov. Pat McCrory repeatedly failed to investigate when industrial-scale hog farms violate anti-pollution rules.

The Waterkeeper Alliance and other groups said Tuesday they’re settling their complaint with the state Department of Environmental Quality.

The groups launched an administrative process a year ago to force DEQ to live up to its obligations and investigate complaints that swine growers violated pollution rules governing the spraying of hog waste on their fields. Since then, McCrory’s agency heads were replaced by Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper.

DEQ now agrees to adopt a new process to promptly investigate citizen complaints. The agency also agreed to monthly updates for an online list of farm operations that have violated pollution laws.