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Responds to Hamilton County supervisors

To the editor:

In response to a letter recently written by Hamilton County supervisors and published by the paper.

They are correct, changes need to be made and this election cycle is the time to think about which candidate is willing to make changes to the large scale livestock feeding operations. I for one, appreciate their willingness to step up and say something. Thank you gentlemen.

I believe a moratorium will help slow the poisoning of our waterways and lakes. Run-off is the number one cause of pollution in the waterways. On the DNR website there is a frightening map showing red colored waterways in Iowa. Take a look.

A moratorium will gain the attention of owners/operators who are not being good neighbors. New technology minimizes odors. Dust collecting units stop the odors from being blown and polluting air, water and land. Planting trees near by provides some control of odors.

We are now getting operators from out of state. Wisconsin is making it harder to put up new feeding operations due to the concerns of overcrowding and pollution. Livestock feeding operations don’t add many permanent jobs, as mentioned by the Hamilton County Supervisors. Maybe one or two permanent full time jobs, many operations bring in management from other locations.

Another place to look to for a needed change is the state attorney general’s office. Recently, Bruce Trautman, the acting director of the DNR, told a group in Lohrville, he could not stop a hog confinement from building close to town. The state attorney general’s office notified him they would mount a defense, should there be a lawsuit. That’s would not, not could not.

Having grown up on a farm, I love Iowa. I don’t want to live anywhere else. These owners have a right to grow their businesses. But I believe that their rights to do so should stop when it has a negative impact on others’ quality of life.

I would like to thank the Calhoun County supervisors for working with Lohrville residents in attempting to prevent an out of state hog confinement from becoming an unwanted reality.

It’s time to stand up and shout about what these large feeding operations are doing to our quality of life. It’s time for politicians to listen to the concerns of those that vote them in and out of office. It’s time to talk to the candidates. And be persistent. We want an Iowa that’s nice to live in and come home to.

Mary Hayes

Lohrville

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