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Manure facility sparks gripes

TOWN INVESTIGATES: Right-to-farm laws will guide Massena in answering neighbors


By LORI SHULL

Watertown Daily Times (New York)


November 21, 2008


MASSENA — The town board continues to investigate claims from residents that a farmer is spraying manure not only on his own farm but on his neighbors' property as well.

A month ago, several disgruntled homeowners went to the town board to complain about a manure pit owned by the Breault family on Route 37C. They say manure is sprayed at all hours, preventing them from opening their windows, hanging laundry outside or enjoying their yards.

The town board now must decide if the Breaults' activities are typical for farms and therefore protected under right-to-farm laws. Those laws protect farms from nuisance lawsuits relating to noise, smells or similar complaints.

The state has developed standards that farmers must meet, however, to be protected. The board is working with various agencies to find out what those standards are and determine whether the Breault farm is in compliance.

"Once we get the standards we can see if there's legitimate complaints there or if Mr. (Jacques) Breault is meeting standards," Supervisor W. Gary Edwards said. "I'm sure he is because the pit was designed and met approval from the state."

Mr. Breault's neighbors also are complaining about the location of the pit, saying it is too close to their land. The pit is behind the Breaults' barn, which is on the same acre as the family's home.

Until the town gets copies of the state standards, however, it's too early to make a decision. The standards include rules about how far manure pits must be from wells, among other things.

"Most of the farmers I know of are very careful not only to protect their neighbors' water but their own water supply," said Dawn C. Howard, St. Lawrence County Soil and Water Conservation District manager.

"They live closer to these pits than anyone."

When the town receives the state regulations, it will still have to tweak its own right-to-farm laws because of a difference in semantics, Mr. Edwards said.

"Apparently in our code, it says 'normal agricultural practices.' The state authorities say it should be 'sound.' By using the word 'normal,' there are no standards," Mr. Edwards said, referring to advice from the state Department of Agriculture and Markets. "There's a recommendation on the table that says that 'normal' should be changed to 'sound.'"

This is not the first time Mr. Breault's neighbors have complained about him, according to Mrs. Howard. The complaints have been the same: manure sprayed on laundry and a contaminated well stuck out in her memory.

"I haven't been up there (this time), but I didn't find anything like that a couple years ago," she said. "This was looked at quite closely when it came up a couple years ago and it turned out to be false."

Mr. Breault refused to comment on the complaints.

The manure pit was built with the help of a federal grant about a year ago to store cow wastes to use as fertilizer. The Breaults used a nutrient management plan to design it, which takes into account the nutrients in the soil and manure and those needed by the crops. It was built to accommodate the manure as well as any water that would be added, including rainfall, Mrs. Howard said.

Manure pits are becoming more common across the country, as the rising costs of fertilizer have made farmers look for alternatives. They also reduce the smell and how frequently farmers have to spread the manure since they have a storage facility.

"A lot of the time, it's a lack of communication because people aren't from farms anymore," Mrs. Howard said. "Farming technology has changed from your grandfather's farm."





November 2008 News