Meet Lynn Henning

Today we’d like to introduce you to Lynn Henning. 

Hi Lynn, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My husband and I farm 300 acres of corn and soybeans in Lenawee County, Michigan. Our farm is located within 10 miles of 12 industrial livestock operations, also known as factory farms or concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs). 

Industrial livestock facilities, which resemble more of a factory than a farm, confine thousands—and sometimes millions—of animals without adequate space or access to open air or posture. 

In 2000, as these operations began to dot my small rural community, a nearby CAFO operator falsely accused us of reporting the facility’s waste discharges to state officials. 

While my husband and I are innocent of this accusation, it’s worth noting that factory farms produce nearly 13 times more waste than the entire U.S. population. But unlike municipalities, they aren’t required to build sewage treatment facilities to safely process all that waste. Instead, it’s stored in open pits called “manure lagoons” and applied untreated to surrounding land. 

The accusation prompted my husband and I—and other concerned neighbors—to form a group called Environmentally Concerned Citizens of South Central Michigan (ECCSCM), which organized to hold CAFOs accountable for pollution. 

Before I knew it, I was contacting state and federal agencies and urging them to take action to protect the public health and the environment. I collected as much information as possible about factory farm spills, their location, and points of origin. I soon understood the practices that led to our local waterways being contaminated. 

After decades of tirelessly sounding the alarm, I have helped expose the egregious polluting practices of factory farms in rural Michigan, gaining the attention of the federal EPA and prompting state regulators to issue thousands of citations for water quality violations. 

Today, in my role as director of Socially Responsible Agriculture Project’s (SRAP) Water Rangers Program, I work with rural communities to protect their right to clean water and hold CAFOs accountable for pollution. 

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
As a result of my activism, my family and I have been subjected to harassment and intimidation by the industry. 

My granddaughter’s bedroom window was shot out. My mailbox has been blown up. Dead animals have been left on my front porch. And I’ve been followed and run off the road while doing water quality monitoring. 

Despite these threats, I’ve continued to help farming communities mitigate the effects of pollution from factory farms. 

Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I was awarded the 2010 Goldman Environmental Prize for my work exposing factory farm pollution in rural Michigan. And in 2015, shortly after joining SRAP, I helped launch the Water Rangers Program, a nationwide initiative to train people affected by factory farm pollution to become citizen scientists. 

We provide water testing training and offer instruction on how to document and report pollution violations to local, state, and federal regulators. The program is the only one in the nation that offers CAFO-focused water quality monitoring training free of charge to anyone in the U.S. Learn more: https://sraproject.org/water-rangers/ 

Are there any books, apps, podcasts, or blogs that help you do your best?
Being around friends and family helps give me hope that we can change the world.

Contact Info:

• Website: sraproject.org
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sraproject/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sraproject
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/socially-responsible-agriculture-project/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/SRAProject
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@sociallyresponsibleagricul6819/videos

Image Credits
Socially Responsible Agriculture Project