Dairy disputes lawsuit's claims

The DeRuyter Brothers Dairy said Thursday that a lawsuit accusing it of polluting the air in the Lower Yakima Valley has no basis in science and that the operation is in full compliance with the Clean Air Act.

In a news release issued by their Seattle lawyers, Jake and Genny DeRuyter said characterization of their dairy as an industrial factory is inaccurate and that they have invested "millions of dollars in upgrades to benefit the cows and the environment."

The Western Environmental Law Center sued the dairy this week in federal court in Yakima on behalf of Community Association for Restoration of the Environment, or CARE, a Granger-based organization. The center also sued the DeRuyters and other dairies in the late 1990s under the Clean Water Act. That lawsuit was settled for attorneys' fees, water-quality testing and the planting of trees as buffers.

Brothers Jake and Nick DeRuyter started the dairy in 1976 with 90 cows on 40 acres of leased land. Their brother Bill joined the operation in 1980. They said they had to expand the herd to stay in business and maintain bank credit. Today, the dairy has more than 6,000 cows on about 100 acres, making them one of the largest in the state.