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California Tops 'Fart Chart' in EPA Dairy Cow Emission Study

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fart-chart-epa-dairy-cows.jpg

Be proud, California -- we're the stinkiest. Mother Jones last week pointed out that we rank #1 for dairy cow emissions (ah, no wonder happy cows come from California).

Now it should be said that the report, analyzed and presented by Santa Monica-based ProCon.org (they nicknamed it the "Fart Chart"), is from 2009 based on even earlier data, but we thought it be still relevant today, considering that L.A. is a cheese-loving and alternative energy-debating kind of town.

Animal rights and environmental groups want the EPA to regulate greenhouse gases from concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) under the Clean Air Act. Citing a a study from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, 18% of greenhouse gases come from animal farm. "This is a higher share than transport," it noted.

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Rounding out the top five dairy cow states is Wisconsin, New York, Pennsylvania and Minnesota.

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