The Center for Food Safety, Environmental Integrity Project, Food & Water Watch, The Humane Society and Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement joined forces to sue the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency after it scrapped a rule that would have allowed it to collect data from large livestock farms. Hugh Espey, Executive Director of the Iowa citizen action group, said in a statement,
"While power plants, waste treatment facilities and manufacturers have had to comply with the protective standards of the Clean Water Act, the factory farming industry has managed to evade any meaningful regulation."