Oregon CAFO farmers want pollution permits kept private

State regulators will hold a public hearing on the proposed expansion of five dairies around Oregon after 17 requests from members of a Salem vegan group and others.

It’s the first hearing in more than four years on changes to an Oregon confined animal feeding operation, or CAFO, sometimes called a factory farm.

“I am against expansions of dairies because of the inevitable pollution and animal abuse intrinsic in the operations,” said Karen Debra Messer, a member of Cherry City Vegans.

“Aside from the facts that more large bovines contribute to more methane which is a greenhouse gas, and that dairy products add to our obesity epidemic, my greatest objection is that dairy farming is a cruel practice,” Tillamook resident Marilyn Burkhardt said.

The interest took industry officials and the Oregon Department of Agriculture by surprise.

“We had to (public) notice these changes,” CAFO Program Manager Wym Matthews said at the July meeting of ODA’s CAFO Advisory Committee. “That was picked up by the Statesman.”

It also prompted the advisory group to discuss how the state could restrict information about CAFOs released to the press and the public.

Industry officials said they were dismayed the Statesman Journal obtained the proposed permits and posted them online.

The advisory group discussed redacting information, hiring a lawyer to review what must be provided, or releasing the permit documents only on paper.

“I was surprised the department is actually issuing electronic files of these documents, rather than making them come in and pay 25 cents per sheet to photocopy them,” said Jerome Rosa, executive director of the Oregon Cattlemen’s Association.

Tami Kerr, director of the Oregon Dairy Farmers Association, said farmers fear that releasing the permits, which include owner name, the farm address — often the farmer’s home — and maps and details about manure lagoons, puts farms at risk from people who want to videotape or trespass or vandalize the property.

That hasn’t happened to any dairies in Oregon, but it has in other states, Kerr said.

“While freedom of information may allow for distribution of information, we want to be clear that animals are protected, farms are protected, the farmers and their livelihood are being protected,” she said. “We want to be sure these folks are not in harm’s way.”

However, cattle ranches in Oregon have withstood threats and terrorist actions, Rosa said.

“I was involved in leadership positions for the industry when some of those have happened,” Rosa said. He declined to provide details of the incidents, saying they would only fuel more attention.

Environmental groups, though, say Oregon is following the lead of other states in restricting what the public can know about practices on factory farms.

“If you have a daycare center in your home, that would be public information. If you’re running a home business, that would be public,” said Patty Lovera, assistant director of Food & Water Watch. “We think people get to know these basic facts about environmental protection and where their food comes from.”

Oregon isn’t often thought of as a center of factory farms.

But the state ranks 14th nationwide for dairy CAFOs, with 90,356 animals, according to Food & Water Watch.

The environmental advocacy group compiled statistics for factory farms across the country using figures from the U.S. Census of Agriculture. It took on the job because no federal agency tracks CAFOs, Lovera said.

Oregon is 16th for cattle, 23rd for broiler chickens and 24th for layer chickens, according to the group’s May 2015 report.

Marion County, meanwhile, ranks fourth-highest statewide for the number of confined animals.

It’s second for dairy, after Morrow County, home of Threemile Canyon Farms, one of the nation’s largest dairy operations. And it’s sixth statewide for broiler chickens.

CAFOs have helped consumers pay less for meat and dairy. But they can also cause environmental and health problems, opponents say.

Because the animals are held in crowded conditions, they’re routinely given antibiotics to ward off disease, leading to concerns about antibiotic resistance.

Manure from the animals is stored in lagoons which can leak, then trucked out or sprayed on surrounding farm fields. And odors intrude on neighbors and can even reduce property values.

“I submitted a public comment about the dairy expansion because as a resident of Oregon, I am vehemently opposed to the dairy industry,” said Jonathan Grindell, a recent Willamette University College of Law graduate.

“Dairy takes up massive amounts of resources that can be used to feed others (with) more efficiency. The pollution and smells from dairy farms is a public nuisance. Exploited workers will have to work even harder for the same pay,” he said. “The only "winners" of dairy expansion is the dairy industry. “

ODA will listen to comments such as Grindell’s at the hearing, but it will only consider those that relate to the proposed changes at the five dairies, Matthews said at the advisory committee meeting.

The state also will soon open a public comment period on a new umbrella permit for CAFOs under the federal Clean Water Act.

Oregon’s CAFOs share a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit, which expired in 2014. State officials have been working with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to draft a new, five-year permit.

Until it becomes final, no new CAFOs can be permitted in the state, said Ray Jaindl, director of ODA’s natural resources program area.

A hearing and public comment period on the NPDES permit is expected for September or October, he said.

Even then, Jaindl said, comments will be limited to the proposed changes to the permit.

“Somebody might say ‘I don’t like CAFOs,’ ” Jaindl said. “That’s something we don’t have authority to deal with.”

Statesman Journal producer David Davis contributed to this report.

tloew@statesmanjournal.com, (503) 399-6779 or follow at Twitter.com/Tracy_Loew

Public hearing

The Oregon Department of Agriculture will hold a public hearing on the proposed expansion of five Oregon dairies.

The hearing is scheduled for 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. September 2 at ODA’s headquarters, 635 Capitol St. NE, Salem, in the basement hearing room.

Written comments will be accepted until 5 p.m. Sept. 9. Mail comments to William Matthews, ODA, 635 Capitol St. NE, Salem, OR 97301; or email wmatthews@oda.state.or.us.

The dairies are:

Moisan Dairy in Keizer

Martin Dairy in Tillamook

Hogan Dairy Farms in Tillamook

Pozzi Dairy in Coquille

Bonanza View Dairy near Bonanza