A new Environmental Working Group geospatial analysis finds over 2 percent of North Carolina’s 7,352 swine and poultry factory farms are in or just outside floodplains. When these farms flood, they can contaminate water with bacteria and other health hazards. “The 156 factory farms we found in and near North Carolina’s floodplains are at a higher risk of flooding, posing a clear and present danger to the environment and public health,” said Al Rabine, EWG senior GIS analyst and co-author of the report. “But many more facilities are at a heightened danger of inundation, thanks to the climate crisis and outdated floodplain science.” As the climate emergency intensifies, flooding from more frequent and more severe storms has already been seen in North Carolina, and more is expected.