There has been one delay after the next in a California company's fight to build a mega dairy in Jo Daviess County. And today it hits a major snag after the State rejects an important certification aimed to protect water quality.

With five-thousand cows comes a lot of waste. And the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency says that waste could end up in our drinking water. That's why it denied Tradition Dairy a special water quality permit required to keep the three-year-old project moving forward.

"This was an unbelievable project that had an unbelievable opportunity for Northwest Illinois and we're throwing it out," says State Representative Jim Sacia.

Tradition Dairy has had a rough time getting started. From an injunction, to a lawsuit over illegally discharging to even battling nearby neighbors in court. While the "H.O.M.E.S." group lost that battle, they find the state's rejection almost as good as won.

"It protects the Apple River, it protects the state park and our drinking water supply. Not to mention fresh air and beautiful countryside. The fat lady hasn't started to sing yet, but I could hear her off stage," says Ken Turner, who lives near the proposed site.

Loss of quality of life has been a fear in Jo Daviess County for quite some time along with the loss of smaller dairy farms. Tradition Dairy pledges to create jobs though, about 40 of them. Its attorney says politics have gotten in the way. Especially since Governor Quinn has opposed the project from the start. And State Representative Sacia blames politics as well.

"It's a matter of great disappointment. When you have a state in financial crisis you have a man that wants to bring positive economic development and it's shooed under the rug, I'm sure Wisconsin will welcome him," he says.

The IEPA says Tradition Dairy has not provided adequate information on how it would prevent water contamination or responded to a series of requests. So it says it denied the certification based on the facts not public or political input.

Tradition Attorney Don Manning declined an on-camera interview. But he tells 23 News this in no way means he's pulling out of Jo Daviess County. He says they're actually not surprised by the State's decision. Because they feel they've been treated unfairly every step of the way.