Regional News: Arkansas AG addresses latest Oklahoma's federal lawsuit over phosphorus pollution in the Illinois River Watershed.I

Drummond

Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin escalated his defense of the state’s poultry industry Thursday, accusing Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond of “unprecedented overreach” in a two-decade federal lawsuit over phosphorus pollution in the Illinois River Watershed.I

n a sharply worded op-ed , Griffin declared that Arkansas “will not yield” to what he described as an attempt by Oklahoma to regulate farming practices inside Arkansas borders and destroy thousands of rural jobs. The case, originally filed in 2005 by Oklahoma against Arkansas-based poultry companies

including Tyson Foods, Cargill, and others, alleges that poultry litter spread as fertilizer in northwest Arkansas has caused excessive phosphorus levels downstream in Oklahoma’s portion of the watershed.

A federal judge in Tulsa ruled in June 2025 that water-quality impairment persists and reaffirmed the companies’ liability, paving the way for possible penalties exceeding $100 million and strict new restrictions on litter use proposed by Drummond. Griffin called those remedies “devastating” and unconstitutional, arguing they would effectively allow one state to dictate another state’s agricultural policy.

Griffin detailed multiple failed attempts to intervene on Arkansas’s behalf, including a 2023 mediation delegation, a 2024 letter to the court, and a 2025 amicus brief—all rejected by the court. He stressed that Arkansas farmers have followed science-based nutrient-management rules for years and that water quality has improved significantly through voluntary conservation efforts and interstate cooperation.The dispute has deepened political rifts in Oklahoma itself.

Griffin

Governor Kevin Stitt has urged compromise to avoid economic damage, while Drummond accused the governor of being influenced by “Big Poultry” corporations. Tyson recently warned it will not renew grower contracts in the watershed unless the litigation eases, a move that has alarmed farmers and legislators on both sides of the state line.Griffin framed the case as a broader threat to state sovereignty, comparing Drummond’s tactics to California’s attempts to impose its environmental rules nationwide.

“If Oklahoma succeeds,” he wrote, “today it’s poultry; tomorrow it could be rice, timber, or manufacturing.”

Environmental advocates in Oklahoma maintain that phosphorus levels remain harmful and that decades of remediation have not fully reversed earlier damage. Drummond’s office insists the lawsuit is about accountability, not punishment, and has rejected settlement offers it deems insufficient.With the case approaching its 20-year mark and further court proceedings looming,

Griffin closed his op-ed with a direct appeal to his Oklahoma counterpart: “Work with us, not against us. Litigation is not a water-quality strategy—cooperation is.” He vowed to exhaust every legal avenue to protect Arkansas farmers and prevent what he called a dangerous precedent for interstate regulation.