WASHINGTON, DC – What do BP and Exxon Mobile have in common with New York’s dairy farmers? More than they should, according to Senator Charles Schumer, due to a provision of the Clean Water Act which treats the fresh milk produced by dairy farms around the country the same as the oil currently flowing freely into the Gulf of Mexico.

“Everyone knows that when Congress enacted these laws it was targeting massive oil spills and toxic substances, not an accident involving milk at one of our state’s small dairy farms,” Schumer said.

Because of its butterfat content, milk classifies as a non-petroleum oil under the regulation’s guidelines, the New York Democrat reported in a conference call last week. As a result, any producer storing more than 1,320 gallons of milk could technically be required to develop a spill prevention plan under the Environmental Protection Agency’s Spill Prevention, Control and Countermeasures (SPCC) program.