Foster County Planning & Zoning Board

~Citizens against the Mega-Dairy LOCATION ~

Join Us, and Prevent the STINK!

NOTICE:  Our concerned citizens meeting took place at the Armory in Carrington on February 12, 2008,  with approximately 40 people attending.  The main concerns addressed were: the location of the Mega-dairy and its closeness to Carrington and the Carrington aquifer... the possibility of it contaminating our ground water; the fact that we need stricter county regulations regarding large CAFO's (Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations such as this Mega-dairy) that want to come to our area; that much of the planning for this proposed Mega-dairy in Carrington was done by some community leaders without notifying the general public. 

Read about a recent manure spill from a mega-dairy lagoon in Maryland.  Do we want to take a chance that something like this could happen to Carrington?

Manure spill could mean months of temporary water supply
Originally published

January 30, 2008
By Gina Gallucci - Frederick News-Post Staff - Maryland

WALKERSVILLE -- For town residents who remember the 1999 sewage spill that forced them to use a makeshift water supply for five months, this could be worse. Test results this week from untreated water show the levels of bacteria and E. coli are greater than in 1999, said Mike Marschner, director of the county's Division of Utilities and Solid Waste Management.

The contamination is the result of a manure lagoon pipe that burst last week, said town commissioner Chad Weddle. The burst actually created two spills, one on Jan. 22 and a second Friday night into Saturday morning.

This spill took about four days to infiltrate the town's water supply, compared to 1999 when it took nine days, Marschner said.

These findings were released during a press conference Tuesday afternoon at Town Hall. The meeting room was packed with media, town and county officials and concerned residents.

More...

Thursday, Jan. 31, 2008
Farmer apologizes for massive manure spill

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"One fear is that what happened in Walkerton, Canada, could happen in our community. In the small Ontario town, which is the site of several dairy farms, seven people died and 2,300 became ill  ...  after drinking water polluted with E. coli, a bacteria contained in cow manure. Cow manure washed into a nearby well after a heavy rain, causing the health crisis, says Peter Rehak, spokesperson for the Walkerton Inquiry, a public commission established to investigate the tragedy."

-Metro Times - Detroit-

Carrington Citzens BETRAYED!

(for 30 pieces of silver or a pile of cow waste?)

3/19/08  Since the time that the Foster County Planning and Zoning Board  turned down the permit for locating the Van Bedaf's mega-dairy so close to Carrington, proponents for the dairy have been hard at work.   Some people who stand to lose potential money or manure from the dairy's creation decided to gather at the County Commissioners meeting on Tuesday to voice their objections to the Board's 4-2 vote against the location of the mega-dairy.  Unbelievably, Les Greger, the chairman of the Board, stood up and requested that the Commissioners overturn his Board's decision. Just because Mr. Greger’s interests are different from the rest of the Board, does it give him the right to eradicate their hard study and consideration of the issue?   One wonders if Mr. Greger even looked at the pile of petitions or read any of the letters from local businesses and concerned citizens and families objecting to the location of the mega-dairy... 

Chairman Greger obviously had his mind made up from the beginning of the process, as evidenced by his actions. Why would he sit as a chairman of the Foster County Planning and Zoning Board if he didn't believe that they had the power and the jurisdiction to decide issues regarding land use for businesses in Foster County?   Now his idea seems to be that the Planning and Zoning Board is merely a group of clerks who are there to simply check that the paperwork is filled out completely.  So, Chairman Greger has apparently been fooling the public all this time, acting as if the Planning and Zoning Board actually had a function to perform other than making sure that all i's were dotted, t's crossed and blanks filled in.  Why bother to have any hearings at all, if the function of the board is simply to rubberstamp any application that is filled out properly?  Better still, why have any county planning and zoning board whatsoever?  That would go along with one of the suggestions hesitantly read to the audience by Dwayne Erickson.

Is this what Carrington and Foster County wants...no planning and zoning board to protect their rights?  Wake up, People!

Click here to print out a copy of the petition.

Near a Large Dairy in ID

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AS-1155
Scott Birchall, Livestock Waste Management Specialist

"One of the most important decisions when planning any livestock facility is site selection. The site for the feedlot operation must not only be suitable for housing, handling and feeding cattle, but also must ensure that surface and ground waters are protected and that the impact from odors is minimized. Whether you are planning a new facility or modifying an existing one, the following checklist may help avoid costly mistakes....

Odor
Minimizing the impact of odor on neighboring residents is a combination of:

~Recognizing the prevailing wind direction. In North Dakota, this is usually from the north west or south east (or north/south in the Red River Valley).
~Using topography to your advantage. Odor tends to "drain" down slope in the evening in summer.
~Reduce visual impact. Visual confirmation of dust is more likely to result in odor complaints. Windbreaks will also help break up odor plumes and provide stock protection.
~Providing a buffer distance to the neighbors. It is difficult to specify a particular buffer distance without taking into account the previous factors. Be aware that odors from some larger facilities have been detected 4 to 5 miles distant. Anyone planning a facility within 1 to 2 miles of neighboring dwellings will have to provide more detailed information on how they plan to minimize odor."

Read More...

(The above web site

-produced by the North Dakota State University
NDSU Extension Service-

is extremely informative about the precautions that should be taken regarding livestock waste management.  How does the proposed MEGA-dairy intend  to address these concerns?)

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When the wind blows across the MEGA-dairy lagoon and toward town, say good-by to outdoor family gatherings and visits on the front porch.