JBS accused of dumping waste into South Platte tributary

GREELEY — A recently filed lawsuit accuses JBS USA, a Greeley-based meat processing giant, of dumping slaughterhouse waste into a South Platte River tributary near Greeley.

The suit was filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Denver by Biological Diversity and Food & Water Watch, a nonprofit conservation organization.

JBS USA subsidiary JBS Swift Beef Co. is named as the defendant in the case.

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“At its Lone Tree Wastewater Treatment Facility in Greeley, Colorado, Swift Beef accepts and treats wastes from two animal slaughterhouses and then discharges the effluent into Lone Tree Creek, a tributary of the South Platte River,” according to the lawsuit complaint. “… Plaintiffs and their members are harmed by Swift Beef’s violations and actions that pollute Lone Tree Creek and the South Platte River, adversely impact the aquatic environment, and contribute to regional air pollution.”

The suit alleges the dumping is in violation of JBS’ Clean Water Act permit, which dictates terms under which the company is allowed to discharge waste. According to the suit, wastewater entering Lone Tree Creek includes animal fat, meat, blood, e. coli, ammonia, and excrement.

“Swift Beef’s unauthorized and illegal discharges from the Lone Tree Facility and noncompliance with the Permit’s terms—including terms requiring Swift Beef to conduct testing and to provide detailed information about its effluent discharges, sampling, and testing—injure members that engage in these recreational and aesthetic uses and deter and limit their uses and enjoyment of these places now and in the future,” the complaint claims.

The suit asks the court to issue an injunction to prohibit JBS from violating its Clean Water Act permit and take the necessary steps to ensure violations do not occur in the future.

As of Friday, JBS had not responded to the suit.