Former poultry official says he wrote 2005 memo to warn of overuse of bird waste on farmland

Official: Wrote memo to warn of dropping’s overuse

TULSA, Okla. — A former Arkansas poultry company executive testified Thursday that he wrote a memo in 2005 warning of the environmental dangers of spreading too much chicken waste on farmland in certain areas.

With the testimony of Monty Henderson, the former president of George’s Inc., Oklahoma hoped to show that the poultry industry knew about and could have dealt with the problems that came with the excessive waste before the state was forced to file a federal lawsuit.

George’s is one of 11 Arkansas companies Oklahoma is suing on claims they’re responsible for polluting the Illinois River watershed with tons of chicken waste.

Henderson, who worked for the company since 1994, testified Thursday that he became aware of the potential problems caused by the over-application of the phosphorous-heavy chicken waste in the late 1990s.

His 2005 memo was contained in a company newsletter mailed to all employees and the farmers who raised birds for the company.

It advised that excess litter — or the droppings, feathers and bedding of the birds — should be hauled out of the concentrated areas where poultry is raised, and insisted the problem needed to be solved very soon.

Louis Bullock, an attorney for Oklahoma, asked Henderson if the problem was solved.

“I would say it’s well on the way to a solution,” Henderson said, noting that his company has trucked out litter from its company-run farms and has growers adhere to nutrient management plans.

Bullock went further back in time, referencing a George’s document from 1998, which advised that the traditional, repetitive approach of getting rid of litter — spreading it on fields as cheap fertilizer to grow crops — could cause runoff. The document suggested looking at alternative uses for the litter.

Thursday marked the 14th day of the trial, which began last month and has been spread out over the past several weeks.

The closely watched case has been mired in numerous delays, either by objections from the 30-some lawyers in the courtroom or other housekeeping matters.

Toward the end of one line of questions Thursday, U.S. District Judge Gregory K. Frizzell, who is hearing the non-jury trial, quipped, “We’ve beaten this chicken to death.”

The other defendants named in the lawsuit are Tyson Foods Inc., Cargill Inc., Cal-Maine Foods, Inc., Tyson Poultry Inc., Tyson Chicken Inc., Cobb-Vantress Inc., Cargill Turkey Production L.L.C., George’s Farms Inc., Peterson Farms Inc. and Simmons Foods Inc.