HOLDENVILLE, Okla.—State agriculture officials believe they limited pollution after a hog farm worker inadvertently sprayed about 10,000 gallons of pig manure in a concentrated area.

Agriculture Department spokesman Jack Carson said berms were created to keep the waste from washing into nearby creeks and eventually the Canadian River while it was vacuumed into the tank of a truck. It was then sprayed over adjacent land owned by the farm, Carson said.

Because it wasn’t raining, Carson said none of the waste washed into state waters.

“It stayed on the property, entered no water supply and was taken care of in a very timely manner,” Carson said.

Carson said he doesn’t expect any regulatory action against the farm, which has about 960 hogs and is operated by Arkansas-based Tyson Foods Inc.

Bacteria from animal feces can pollute rivers and other components can cause oxygen-dead zones in the water.

“If indeed it didn’t make its way into waters of the United States, we’re lucky,” said Terri Savage, a member of the state Environmental Quality Board. “These factory farms are just a disaster waiting to happen.”

Farms are required to move their manure spraying equipment every 25 to 45 minutes to prevent the waste from saturating the land, but Carson said an unidentified worker allowed a spray gun to shoot a concentrated amount of waste onto the farm’s property overnight Wednesday.

Workers noticed the mistake the following morning and contacted the Agriculture Department.

Tyson Foods spokeswoman Libby Lawson said in a statement that the spill was an accident, and noted that the farm was working in cooperation with the state Department of Agriculture. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency lists no regulatory actions against the Holdenville farm in its online database.