“WHAT YOU DON'T KNOW CAN HURT YOU”
This is the title of a flyer being distributed by a group of people who
live close to Reynolds, Illinois. Seems there is someone who
wants to build a HOG CONFINEMENT near their town, and they are not
happy about it.
On Monday, September 26th at 6:30 PM there will be a public meeting
regarding this. ANGIE LITTERST is one of those neighbors.
Angie and 11 others have brought suit against the farmer, arguing that
this confinement will smell up their air and make them sick, pollute
their water, and cause too much traffic for their small area to
handle. Angie has written letters to the editor and has been on
at least one local radio station in the past several weeks.
One of the speakers at the public meeting will be KAREN HUDSON OF THE
GRACE FACTORY FARM PROJECT www.factoryfarm.org. She is also
president of FARMS (FAMILIES AGAINST RURAL MESSES).
Karen, a farmer from Elmwood, Illinois, is also a board member of the
Illinois Stewardship Alliance and is a member of the Illinois
House/Senate Joint Livestock Committee. She happens to live next
to a SMITHFIELD HOG FACTORY IN ADJOINING KNOX COUNTY.
The state of Illinois does not have a MASTER MATRIX implemented by
their Department of Natural Resources like the state of IOWA
does. Even though our Master Matrix is flawed, we do have
something basic to start with.
According to Karen Hudson, neighbors close to a Highlands LLC Murphy
Farms livestock factory have had problems. “Empty promises were
broken. The neighbors continue to suffer from an onslaught of
odors, gases, and particulates. We have even witnessed manure and
urine from its lagoons being pivot irrigated in 40 mph winds.
Neighbors' cars (have) been covered with this effluvium when driving on
nearby roads.”
An over-application of manure in 2002 by the Highlands LLC killed at
least 10 species of fish on a 1 ½ mile area of French Creek in Knox
County, Illinois. Also according to Karen, INWOOD DAIRY, of
Elmwood in Peoria County (now called NEW HORIZONS – give me a break)
“deliberately pumped between TWO AND TEN MILLION GALLONS OF WASTE from
its brimming lagoon into dry dams on the property RESULTING IN THE
LARGEST WASTE SPILL IN ILLINOIS HISTORY. Despite its relatively
short existence, the Elmwood milk factory boasts a sorry history of
pollution problems. The milk factory's POOR ENVIRONMENTAL RECORD
EARNED IT NATIONAL EXPOSURE IN SPILLS AND KILLS, A REPORT ISSUED
BY THE ISSAC WALTON LEAGUE AND CLEAN WATER NETWORK IN AUGUST, 2000.”
Hopefully this meeting will continue the public discussion that needs
to be going on IN EVERY COUNTY WHERE ANIMALS ARE CRUELY CONFINED FOR
CORPORATE PROFIT. While speaking in front of the Scott County Board of
Supervisors this past summer about 2 requested expansions, I was
reminded of several important things.
One, we need to spend time with lawmakers in IOWA to fix the MASTER
MATRIX. The IOWA DNR has too much control over placement of
confinement buildings. Local public input doesn't seem to matter
yet. It is just a formality, and no matter how your county
officials vote, yea or nay to the permit request, the DNR is still the
final authority.
WE DO NOT HAVE TO KILL OURSELVES LOCALLY TO FEED THE WORLD. Our
economy is important but not if IOWA is going to become like North
Carolina with no clean lakes, rivers, or streams.
So find out in your county where there is discussion about CAFO's
(CONFINED ANIMAL FEEDING OPERATIONS), do your research, and PARTICIPATE.
YOU KNOW THE DRILL…CPR = CONSERVE/PARTICPATE/RECYCLE
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