Committee wraps up CFO work (4/6/05)

After making a few minor changes, a group studying possible changes in the way livestock operations are regulated locally will take its findings to Jay County Commissioners.

An ad hoc committee of local officials, farmers and citizens met for the final time this morning, agreeing by consensus on a few changes.

On March 17, the committee held a public hearing on the proposed changes to livestock regulations, drawing a capacity crowd to the auditorium in the Jay County Courthouse.

The comments that night were fairly balanced between those who favored more stringent regulation and those who were against additional enforcement efforts.

The co-chairs of the committee — Jim Zimmerman and Dr. Steve Myron — will present the group’s recommendations to the county commissioners in the coming weeks.

Zimmerman, who is a member of the county council and planning commission, also owns a large egg-laying operation. Myron is the Jay County health officer.

Some of the recommendations from the committee will require changes to the county’s zoning ordinance, while others would require new general ordinances.

The commissioners are expected to refer any zoning issues to the planning commission, which has six farmers among its nine members — including four who are confined feeding operators regulated by the Indiana Department of Environmental Management.

Among the changes this morning was a relaxing of proposed setbacks for manure application.

At the urging of Jay County Commissioner Gary Theurer, a member of the committee, the committee agreed to propose a 100-foot setback from any residence, church, school or business for the application of manure.

The previous recommendation from the committee had been 250 feet from a residence, church or school. Theurer, Steve Howell and Zimmerman were among those who thought that measure was too restrictive.

The committee also agreed to ease a proposed regulation on the staging of dry poultry manure prior to spreading. The recommended setbacks for that “staging” will be the same as the setbacks for a confined feeding operation — 100 feet from a road, 500 feet from a residence and 1,000 feet from a church or school.

The setback requirements would apply to the application of manure from all sizes of farms — not just the large operations. The smaller facilities would also be subject to the same setbacks.

Committee member Sharen Michael, a teacher who lives on a farm in northern Jay County, told fellow committee members this morning that she favored keeping the previous recommendations intact.

“I think we ought to let the commissioners fight it out,” she said. Michael has urged regulation of all livestock operations — including those of a smaller scale.

Theurer, who took criticisms from both sides during the public hearing in March, said he was leery of piling too many regulations on farmers. He said he wished the committee would have gotten more input from state regulatory agencies such as IDEM during the information process.

“I don’t want to get to the point where we’re restricting farmers ... from making a living,” Theurer said. “I want to keep it so the family farmer, the local people, can still farm.”

Much of this morning’s discussion focused on issues connected with the application of manure — a process several members, including John Knipp, Howell and Zimmerman — identified as an asset.

At Howell’s suggestion, all references in the recommendations to the “disposal” of manure will be changed to “application.”

Myron said this morning he believes a more comprehensive local application and approval process for new and/or expanding confined feeding operations is one of the committee’s most important accomplishments.

The process, as proposed, would include notification of property owners within one-mile of the proposed facility, with a local public hearing to be held if a member of the public or a local official finds a reasonable objection.[[In-content Ad]]