Over 200 attend JFAN Annual Meeting
It was an especially inspiring meeting last week at the Best Western where over 200 people came to hear 12 speakers elaborate on the hog confinement issues we are facing, the risks to this community, and the need to promote change in the legislature The keynote speaker, Dr. Kendall Thu, presented the health effects of hog confinements as shown in peer reviewed scientific research. The most recent area of research over the past several years has been the investigation of health effects on individuals living in proximity to CAFOs. This research has shown increased levels of respiratory illness among such people. Dr. Thu believes the research is compelling enough to warrant a moratorium on the construction of new confinements. "At the very least, confinements should not be built within two miles of people with pre-existing respiratory conditions." The Institute of Science, Technology and Public Policy of Maharishi University of Management released a White Paper on Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs). Its executive summary states "research studies indicate that CAFOs are causing measurable harm across a broad range of environmental, biological and economic parameters." MUM spokesman, Steve Yellin, made a point of expressing its support for the raising of livestock in a humane and environmentally friendly way. Bill Witherspoon asked that 5 other businesses join him in contacting Governor Culver and state that unless local control of CAFOs is granted, they will take their business out of the state. Residents of Pleasant Plain area expressed their thanks to JFAN's help in approving grants for lawsuits. David Sykes, a JFAN Board member, stated a "legal how to primer" will be released in 4 to 6 weeks. Based on a JFAN grant to the Brick Gentry law firm of Des Moines, it will help Iowa residents and their legal counsel on the specifics of how to protect a client that is affected by the animal confinement issues. Bruce Grady, of CleanupIowa.Org, reviewed the proposed legislation. Rep. Whitaker is working on a bill to toughen the Master Matrix system and one to increase the required distance of separation between hog confinements. Also, there is a bill proposing a moratorium on new confinements. Three speakers from Wapello and Keokuk counties addressed the impact of 30,000 hogs in 6 new proposed hog confinements just across the northwest border of Jefferson County. According to family farmer Craig Sylvester the new corporate owned confinements were planed in secrecy for many months and then rapidly sprung on the community in order to minimize effective opposition. Sylvester explained that the confinements will probably put his own hog farrowing operation out of business due to their close proximity and the dissemination of diseases present in the out of state hogs shipped in for the new operations. With the growth of factory farms, Iowa has almost entirely lost its own hog farrowing operations to other states. The Mayor of Martinsburg, Mike Jasper, described the severe financial burden his small town will be under due to an unprecedented increase in road wear that will come from the heavy trucks needed to supply and run the new operations. According to the Mayor, because Martinsburg is in Keokuk County and the confinements are all in Wapello, they will not see any tax revenue from the operations, yet will have to bear the brunt of the road infrastructure bill, since most of the trucks will come and go through his town. He also described the huge amounts of liquid manure from these operations and their impact on the town as well as increased liability exposure to their own sewage system. Chris Petersen, president of the Iowa Farmers Union (IFU) gave a heartfelt speech on how the economy, environment, and the quality of life for Iowa residents has deteriorated as a result of CAFOs entering the state. He stated that local control of the industrial livestock facilities is at the very top of the IFU agenda. He was critical of Farm Bureau policies which he believed were detrimental to independent traditional family farmers and rural residents of Iowa. David Murphy, a statewide organizer on confinement issues from the Okoboji Lake area in Northwest Iowa, stated that the issue is tearing up rural Iowa. He thinks everyone needs to work together to find solutions and he affirmed the need to promote change in the legislature. At the end of the night, JFAN announced the launch of its 1,000 person membership drive. According to JFAN President Jim Rubis, "By creating a JFAN membership base, the organization will greatly increase its power to be recognized and heard on the vital issue of new hog confinement construction in Jefferson County and the State of Iowa." In addition, JFAN, a non-profit, tax-deductible organization, has a goal of raising $100,000 in the current year. Go to www.jfaniowa.org/membership.html to join JFAN.
