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Tuesday, December 15, 2015
A Viewer Writes: Meeting today regarding the proposed chicken houses
I just got word that at the county council meeting today they are going to be talking about the proposed chicken houses. The meeting begins at 10 but they've pushed back the chicken houses proposal until after lunch. I realize this is super inconvenient for most, as it is for me too. I plan on attending, and will try to convince the council to hold an open meeting for citizens in the near future.
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8 comments:
Why do they need to do this? If I want to build a chicken house on my land, I would just build it.
one might be acceptable
13 is not you idiot
You must not live near there. I do and have for over 30 years.
Due to the economics of this wonderful county the property values have already dropped considerably over the last two years. Add 13 Feeding houses and my property and my drinking water are worth even less.
This is land bought up by someone with no ties here other that some country bumpkins who don't know the first thing about running a county allowing themselves to be totally blind sided by dollars.
They will drive more hard working people away form here and grow the sesspool it has become.
Sad that the meeting must be in the middle of the day when most of us who do work can't be there.
This is no ordinary Chicken House. It will be a manufacturing mega farm operation which is said to be the largest in Wicomico County. It will require wastewater sewage ponds that will be sitting on top of the Paleo Channel which is the main aquifer of clean drinking water for the city of Salisbury as well as most residents of this county and southern Sussex County. The mess and smell will affect residents in the surrounding area so this is a big deal!
This is a no-brainer. If the project meets all zoning codes then it MUST be approved. If it fails to meet all zoning codes is MUST be denied. Either the County will follow their own laws or they will not. Ex Post Facto lawmaking is a no-no.
I would like to know what the surrounding residents think of this?
I can't believe Bill Twilley would approve of this since it goes right up against his property!
I knew it. A bunch of NIMBY's. Not in my backyard do gooders. You moved to an agricultural area and now complaining about chicken houses.
A bunch of hypocrites on this blog and throughout the county speaking against this project. How many of you eat chicken? Nice, cheap meat isn't it? Nothing like buying a meal for your whole family for only a few bucks, right? Imagine what happens when you over regulate beyond necessity and make poultry farming more expensive and difficult. Who suffers then? I can tell you that it isn't the big poultry companies - they are going to get theirs. It's the farmers, poultry industry workers and ultimately you when you check out at the grocery store with your chicken cuts that suffer the most. You see, the poultry companies will cut costs and increase prices in order to maintain profits. Those cuts will be coming out of the pockets of the growers and the employees who collect and process chickens. When supply goes down and the demand increases (because the population that needs to be fed isn't going to decrease) then the cost of chicken products at the retailers will rise substantially. The poultry industry (and agriculture industry as a whole) simply cannot continue to feed a growing American population without increased means of production. We WILL eventually starve. PERIOD!
Now let's look at this particular project - 13 600ft poultry houses proposed on approximately 63 acres. Yes, it is a large project, but is scale really a determining factor in the decision here? And should it be? What is the difference between doing three separate projects of 4-5 poultry houses each and one large project of 13 poultry houses? Those three individual projects of 4-5 poultry house have and would be approved with minimal debate. If anything, wouldn't it be more beneficial and less intrusive on the surrounding areas if poultry house projects were more concentrated to one area or project?
As far as the environment and runoff are concerned, what does it matter? Inside or outside of the paleochannel should not be a debatable factor. Poultry operations like this are completely covered. Poultry waste is contained to covered structures such as manure storage buildings and poultry houses themselves. There is no manure runoff to be worried about contaminating groundwater. Think about it... Have you ever driven by a poultry operation and seen mounds of bird crap piled up outside on the property? Didn't think so... Personally, the water source in my home is supplied by Salisbury's water system and I am not concerned one bit by this project contaminating the drinking water that my family and I consume every day. Farmers themselves drink out of the wells drilled into the land directly below their operation - you don't see them running around with extra arms growing out of their foreheads or major health issues. Also, this isn't the first poultry operation to be built or proposed inside the paleochannel - is scale the only thing that makes this project so relevant?
And for all of you NIMBY-ists out there concerned about the smell and your property values being driven down. Guess what, YOU LIVE IN AN AGRICULTURALLY ZONED AREA! This is an ALLOWED AND DESIGNATED USE! You knew (or should have known) that an operation like this could have been moving in next door when you bought the property. Sorry, I am NOT sorry that you choose to live in your "fantasy" country setting where the stench farm operations is not allowed. The fact of the matter is that it is an area designated for AGRICULTURAL use - your residential use is permitted, but that doesn't mean that future agricultural uses are allowed at your discretion. If you don't like it then I suggest you move because YOU are in the wrong place, not them. In fact, I'd be glad to buy your land at a reduced rate due to your ignorance and poor investment. By the way, in case you haven't noticed, it is pretty hard to avoid the sweet smell of agriculture on Delmarva. I live within the City and I still get a nice whiff of fresh manure spread on an open field in the morning when I step out of my door. Perhaps you should think about moving to the DC metro area because you clearly do not belong here.
The ONLY objection that I have to this project (and it isn't exactly a good one) is that it is being proposed by outsiders. The applicants have no prior poultry growing experience within the US and what little experience they do have stems from decades ago overseas in a far less regulated environment. Can we count on them to produce as good stewards to the environment as most other local farms do? Are they taking advantage of incentives at the expense of other local farmers? Does this project hurt other local farmers economically? What do other local farmers think of this project? Seems to me that this decision should be heavily weighed on by other farmers in the area.
I think that we are succumbing to the views and opinions of a few in lieu of looking at the actual facts and relevant information. The poultry industry is one of the primary reasons Delmarva is even on the map. It drives our region economically and puts food on the table for millions of Americans. If our policies and decisions continue the way they have been, we WILL push this industry out of our area and a lot will go with it. Just remember... no farmers, no food!
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