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Wisconsin Green Party
www.wisconsingreenparty.org
Bussiere for State Senate
www.votejill.org
August 07, 2006
Contact:
Jill Bussiere, 920 388-0529 or 920 255-2175 jdt@itol.com, www.votejill.org
Legislators should not weaken proposed runoff rules, says Bussiere
KEWAUNEE -- Bussiere, candidate for Wisconsin State Senate District
1, disagreed with the ruling of the Senate Agriculture and Insurance Committee and Assembly Agricultural Committee on NR 243, which updates the
state's manure handling rules for Concentrated Animal Feedlot Operations
(CAFO's) . The committees voted to refer the rule back to the DNR to consider modifications. If the DNR does not modify the rule by 5 PM on
Monday, the committee moved to object to the modifications with the opinion
that they are "arbitrary and capricious, and impose an undue hardship".
"Farmers choose what kind of farming they do," said Bussiere. "They can opt
for practices that have been shown to safeguard the health of the land and
water, such as rotational grazing."
"If the choice is to be a CAFO, which has a larger potential for degrading
our water quality, then farmers need to be subject to regulations to ensure
that the water quality is preserved. Most CAFO farmers realize this, and
have already taken adequate measures. It is the job of the DNR, and our state legislators, to ensure that all CAFO farmers take such measures."
Saxon Homestead Farms and Soaring Eagle Dairy in Manitowoc County and
Pagel's Ponderosa in Kewaunee County are a part of U.W. Extension's Discovery
Farms project, where University of Wisconsin researchers carefully monitor
and analyze various farming practices and their effects on the environment.
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NR 243 has three new elements that were formulated based on data collected
from the Discovery Farms project:
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A ban on spreading liquid manure in February and March, and any time the
ground is frozen or snow covered - unless it can be incorporated into the
soil. Based on data collected at the UW Extension's Discovery Farms
project, this is when the risk of runoff into surface and groundwater is
highest.\
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A requirement for 6 months of manure storage capacity, to accommodate the
manure produced during the months when spreading is banned. Nearly 80% of
existing CAFOs already have this.
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A list of additional groundwater protections, such as setbacks for
spreading from wells and geological features that allow rapid movement into
groundwater.
"Our water quality is a vital asset that we all rely upon," said
Bussiere. "We know that manure spreading in winter is one practice that threatens our
water quality. Fifty-two cases of fish kills and contamination caused by
manure runoff from CAFO's and other farming operations have been documented.
"Regulating CAFO manure spreading is a first and necessary step towards
ensuring our water quality. NR 243 should not be weakened."
Bussiere, former Co-chair of the Wisconsin Green Party, is making water
quality one of the core issues of her campaign.
For more information
Bussiere for State Senate
www.votejill.org
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