RESIDENTS OF MASSACHUSETTS OPPOSING BILL # 3818

We are opposed to passing House Bill # 3818, “An Act Regulating the Keeping of Swine in the Town of Tewksbury”.

Please use this link to the MA Farm Bureau Federation for their input on House Bill # 3818: www.mfbf.net
In the Bill submitted it is requested that restrictions be put on a farm that has been there for approximately 100 years.  Bill # 3818 essentially would close the doors to this family farm and the others in the town forever, as well as open the doors to this railroad tactic across the state, essentially ending the entire premise of the “Right to Farm” law.

We are in conflict of House Bill # 3818 for the following reasons:

·         Krochmal Farm, South Street, Tewksbury MA is under the guise of numerous governmental agencies, for example, “announced and un-announced routine inspections by local authorities, inspection once a month by a DAR animal inspector, once every three months from the USDA Veterinarian Services and DAR compost representative on an on-going basis, Surveillance is performed on a regular basis from Town of Tewksbury Board of Health which includes normal office hours and off hours.  Additionally, DAR performs surveillance during normal office hours” according to a letter from Ralph McHatton, Chairman of the Board of Health in Tewksbury MA.    He goes on in the letter to state “Currently there are NO violations pertaining to these regulations.  The farm (Krochmal Farm) holds a current permit for livestock.  The animals have suitable shelter and corral space.  All shelters and corrals are maintained in a clean manner free of decaying food, filth, dirt or stagnant water and other items that may be of danger to the animals. …. There is an understanding that all farms in general will have odors associated with them and this office will continue to work with (the farm’s owners) to ensure odors are maintained within normal farm operations.”

·         According to a letter from Department of Agricultural Resources (Massachusetts) to the Director of the Tewksbury Board of Health, findings made by the Dept of Ag show “all activities of the farm witnessed by, and described to DAR fall within the confines of standard agricultural practices” The statement that the farming practices at the Krochmal Farm are “in a manner consistent with standard agricultural practices” is repeated time and time again in the report.  The report also states “There was little to no odor at the time of the visit, even in close proximity to the animals.”

·         According to a letter from Department of Public Health (Massachusetts) to the Director of the Tewksbury Board of Health, findings made by the Dept of Public Health show “In conclusion, the available health data do not indicate that Tewksbury residents are experiencing an unusual pattern of asthma that would suggest residential proximity to the farm has played a primary role.”… the letter also states “Thus, based on the pediatric asthma and hospitalization data, there does not appear to be an unusual pattern of asthma or other respiratory outcomes among Tewksbury residents, notably in the area of Krochmal Farm”.

·         According to a letter from Woodard & Curran, Inc. – an independent firm hired by the Town of Tewksbury Conservation Committee (Walther Polchopek) to test for farm runoff by sampling wetlands adjacent to Krochmal Farm states “The data do not indicate any conclusive impacts resulting from farm runoff” and “Furthermore, there were no observations of surface water runoff to the wetland system, and a forested buffer was present between the farm and the isolated pool”.

·         According to the Homeland Security Act of 2002, the farm should not divulge to the public the number of livestock it is raising for human consumption.  To do so is a direct violation of this Act, yet the bill which is going before you blatantly requests this information be made public.  The bill also requests an unnamed entity (the "approving authority" - who decides who the approving authority is? What experience would they have relative to agricultural practices?) to monitor the farm at all times.  The bill also asks for Manure Management Plan (already in place),  Nutrient plan (already in place) and oversight from numerous government agencies - Dept. of Agriculture, Dept. of Environmental Protection, USDA Veterinarian Association, and numerous local agencies as well as many others - All which are already monitoring farming activities and have all stated that the farm is following "Standard Agricultural Practices".  This bill gives the authority to unknown, unnamed person or persons to essentially close the farm on their given whim.  Would any other business survive?  If they told you they could take your home from you because they don't like the way your lawn was cut or because your child rode a bike that was a color that offended them?

    We believe that to pass this Bill #3818 would be a grievous error.Not only does it completely disregard the “Right to Farm” law (No action may be maintained against any person or entity resulting from the operation of a farm or any ancillary or related activities thereof, if said operation is an ordinary aspect of said farming operation or ancillary or related activity).There are a number of Governmental agencies, some listed above, which have already deemed this farm to be following “standard agricultural practices”.By allowing this bill to pass, you will be opening the doors for every town / city in the Commonwealth to add specific restrictions over any farms located in that community.With the restrictions requested in this Bill, there is not one farm that would be able to survive.This specific farm (Krochmal Farm) has tried above and beyond to peacefully co-exist with the few neighbors that are trying to shut it down.The farm has gone so far as to install a state of the art Odor Abatement System by Juergens Environmental Co., which one half of the very high cost was covered by a grant from the state and the other half was a cost to the farm owners.
   We are requesting that you make sure this bill is not passed.  We need to save the Family Farms that are left in Massachusetts, not pave the way to close them all.  They are our past, our present, and our future.