By Associated Press
Tulsa, OK – TULSA, Okla. (AP) After four months, closing arguments in the state of Oklahoma's federal pollution lawsuit against the Arkansas poultry industry are beginning.
The arguments were scheduled last Thursday but delayed a week after U.S. District Judge Gregory Frizzell became ill. Frizzell has presided over the 51-days of hearings during the past four months.
Oklahoma claims the industry has polluted a pristine watershed with tons of chicken litter the feathers, droppings and bedding left in barns after birds are taken to slaughter.
The industry claims farmers broke no laws when they used the litter on their land as cheap fertilizer. The companies say Oklahoma has failed to produce any evidence that the waste poses a threat to humans or the environment.