Community outraged after single dairy farm kills 11,000 fish
A Maryland community is demanding answers after nearly 11,000 fish died in a local stream, with residents blaming a nearby dairy farm for polluting the water.
The Maryland Department of the Environment traced the mass fish kill, which affected 25 species, to manure runoff from Kilby Farm on Firetower Road in Colora, Cecil County, CBS Baltimore reports.
Now, state officials are asking a judge to hold the farm’s owner and operator, Hartland Holdings LLC, in contempt for allegedly violating a court order to stop polluting the waterway.
“Unfortunately, he’s not following the rules, and the stream, and importantly, the community is paying the price,” Adam Ortiz, deputy secretary of MDE, told the outlet.
MDE says the farm’s owners took over the property in 2017 and significantly increased the cattle herd by 2021. The agency alleges the resulting waste was not properly managed, allowing manure to contaminate Basin Run.
The state has already taken the farm to court in a state lawsuit over alleged repeated manure and pollution discharges into Basin Run, with Maryland also asking a judge to hold the dairy in civil contempt for allegedly violating a 2025 settlement.
“These violations are unacceptable. We are taking this issue very seriously and have already obtained a preliminary injunction from the court barring this facility from discharging pollution into the waterway. We are now asking the judge to hold the operator in contempt of that ruling,” MDE told CBS Baltimore in a statement.
“The count is 0-2. You got to get it right this time. Otherwise, more punitive actions can take place,” Ortiz said.
Continued pollution could threaten other waterways, including the Susquehanna River and the Chesapeake Bay, officials warn.
The farm’s owners reportedly declined to comment to CBS Baltimore, which said it had also contacted their attorneys and was awaiting a response.
Longtime residents say the fish deaths reflect years of worsening pollution in Basin Run.
John Woodrow, who has lived beside the waterway for 70 years, told CBS Baltimore that conditions began deteriorating about five years ago.
“Everybody knows why it’s happening. Everybody knows, but greed makes it keep on going,” he said.
“Next thing you know, you start seeing increased weeds on the side of the stream, less fish, more algae growing on the rocks, water less clear,” he added.
