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. 

2/18/08  Carrington Independent: Allen Stock (2/18/08) -- "Tom Erdmann, spokesperson for the Chamber Ag Committee noted last week that, "'You really can't bring things out to the public until some signatures are on dotted lines.'"  Read more...

2/18/08  Interestingly enough, our server and this web site got knocked offline part of yesterday and today so that we haven't been able to update anything since then.  However, people HAVE been able to access the Jamestown Sun's newspaper article where the mayor of Carrington, Don Frye, is quoted as saying that some of our comments are "racist" as well as information being "inaccurate and inappropriate."  Please note that he appears to be one of the committee members who have been meeting with the dairy owners and who want the Mega-dairy to locate near Carrington.  Question:  Which is worse, someone who is supposedly a "racist" because he doesn't want a bunch of illegal migrant workers coming to the area and depleting the local economy, or an elected public official who seems to be with-holding important information from the public which may affect their lives in a negative way?

2/20/08  Plausible Deniability:  Don't give your public officials the chance to use this excuse.

2/24/08  What is more important?  Are out-of-country, big money interests more important than our neighbors and friends who have been living here and supporting our community for years? 

2/26/08:  Local citizen speaks to Planning and Zoning Board 

2/27/08  Report on the February 26th Meeting before the Planning and Zoning Board

2/28/08  Read the Jamestown Sun report written by Jackie Hydra.

2/28/08  Large CAFO's surrounding Carrington?  A hog factory?  Read more...

3/3/08 Read the Foster County Independent news article "Pros and cons of the dairy"

3/3/08  Local citizen questions mayor's actions (Letter to Editor, Foster County Independent)

3/7/08  "There are reams of scientific research reports documenting the linkages between CAFOs and various public health risks."  Read about the "precautionary principle" in regard to CAFOs.

3/7/08  Mega-dairy engineering plan not available to public...  WHY?

3/9/08  Letter to Foster County Planning and Zoning Board

3/10/08  First casualty of the proposed mega-dairy:  Real estate sale near Carrington cancelled!  Buyer, scheduled to close (on March 11th) on property two miles from Carrington finds out about proposed mega-dairy and decides not to close deal.

3/10/08  Concerned citizens committee gets first look at mega-dairy engineering plan... Questions immediately arose regarding flaws and incomplete information.

3/13/08   What Have We Learned?

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?

Update: 2/14/08

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

~~~

"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-

Should Deals Be Signed "on Dotted Lines" before Informing the Public?

The following is quoted from the February 18, 2008, issue of the Foster County Independent--Allen Stock/reporter:

(Title of Article)  Proposed dairy operation in plans for several years: Chamber Ag Committee began search in 2005

     The proposed dairy operation for the area has been in the planning stages for several years and not just a development that came to pass in the past few months.

     The project, instituted by the Carrington Chamber of Commerce Ag Committee, has been studied for nearly three years before the results were opened to the public.  That is done in compliance to confidentiality, a facet of business that is more likely than not used when seeking a new business for any given area.

     Such was the case of the Chamber of Commerce and the proposed dairy operation which seeks a permit to operate on a plot of land located in Carrington township, southeast of the city.

     Tom Erdmann, spokesperson for the Chamber Ag Committee noted last week that, "You really can't bring things out to the public until some signatures are on dotted lines."

     "It's really not public until that is done, it's just a way of doing business." he said.

      --------------------------------------------------------

Questions:  How could a member of the general public (with land for sale) have had a chance to sell their property to the Van Bedafs if he/she was not a member of - or had special connections to - this special committee?  Could there have been other landowners in Foster County who would have liked to sell their property to the Van Bedafs... landowners who were not on this special committee and therefore not privy to their "confidential" dealings.   Is it fair to keep the general public in the dark about community projects until business deals are signed on the "dotted lines?"   Ask yourself these questions:  Who stands to benefit from the land deal with the Van Bedafs?  Who holds the loans on the property in question?  Who owns the property in question?  Whose homes are being bought by the Van Bedafs?  Who has made deals with the Van Bedafs to have their manure spread on their land?  Think of all the secrets that had to be kept in order for this mega-dairy project to have gotten so far without most of our community knowing about it.  Is this a "way of doing business" that our Carrington community wants to support?  Isn't there a fairer, more open way that would give more people a chance to benefit... not just the few committee members and selected persons/businesses  who are privy to inside information?  And lastly, would the location of this proposed mega-dairy site - so close to our city - have been chosen if the community had been informed all along and had been allowed to have a say in their future welfare?

Click here to print out a copy of the petition.

Near a Large Dairy in ID

~~~

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?)

~~~

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.   

All the content of this web site (except links to other web sites) is solely the property and responsibility of Ted Keller, dba YourCounties.Com.  Any questions, objections or comments about the content of this web site should be directed to info@stinkfreecarrington.com.  We promote and advocate free speech in this forum and invite opinions of others.