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Defendant Sentenced for Water Pollution in North Carolina
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – William ‘Billy’ Franklin Johnston, the owner of one of North Carolina’s largest dairy farms located in Fletcher, N.C., has been sentenced to six months of home detention and a $15,000 fine for his role in the discharging of cow feces into the French Broad River.
The dairy company, Tap Root Dairy, LLC, was also fined $80,000 and placed on a four-year probationary term. The company is required to abide by a comprehensive environmental compliance plan.
A criminal bill of information filed in U.S. District Court on November 11, 2013, charged Tap Root and Johnston with one count of violation of the Clean Water Act, in connection with the discharging of cow feces into the French Broad River.
Court documents indicate that beginning in 2009, Johnston let his certification lapse as Operator in Charge (OIC) of Tap Root’s animal waste management system. Despite receiving repeated warnings and notices, court records show that as of December 4, 2012, Tap Root still had not designated a valid OIC to oversee its waste management system.
According to filed documents, from September 3, 2012 to December 4, 2012, for a total of 93 days, Johnston and the Tap Root employees failed to check and maintain the levels of cow waste in their on-site waste containment lagoons.
This resulted in the spillover and discharge of 11,000 gallons of cow feces and other waste into the French Broad River on December 4, 2012. Testing by the North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources concluded that the fecal coliform level where the waste stream meets the river was 99,000 parts per million.
Key Facts
- State: North Carolina
- Category: Environmental Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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