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LSP Applauds Court’s Support of Winona County Decision on Factory Farm

LSP Launches ‘Story Center Powerline’ Initiative for Rural Residents Fighting Big Ag

November 21, 2023

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LEWISTON, Minn. — Land Stewardship Project (LSP) members applauded today’s decision by the Minnesota District Court to deny Daley Farm’s latest attempt to circumvent Winona County’s rules related to the size of large livestock operations. (The Court’s decision is available here.) For the past four years, Daley Farm has sought a variance from the county’s 1,500-animal-unit cap in order to expand its Lewiston dairy operation to nearly 6,000 animal units (roughly 4,500 cows). The Winona County Board of Adjustment (BOA) has twice denied the variance, and, despite strong opposition from Winona County residents, Daley officials have repeatedly turned to legal and other tactics to bypass these local government decisions.

“This is bullying, just like it is for kids in school,” said LSP member Richard Ahrens, a retired beef and crop farmer from Lewiston. “Daley knows there is an animal cap and that there are rules, and that in our county we follow the rules. The rules were made to protect the people and the land. That’s the bottom line.”

Daley Farm’s proposal would concentrate the manure of approximately 4,500 dairy cows in a region where drinking water is already plagued by such high nitrate levels that the Environmental Protection Agency recently requested that state agencies take action to protect the health of residents. Because Winona County has had an animal unit cap in place for over 20 years, Daley Farm was required to request a variance (a permit allowing the operation to go above the limit) from the Board of Adjustment (BOA) in order to quadruple the size of its operation.

“Each community is unique,” said Kelley Stanage, an LSP member from Winona and former public official who was sued by Daley Farms last year, along with other public officials. “Minnesota law allows communities to decide for themselves how their land should be used. Because of its vulnerability to pollution due to karst geology, Winona County long ago placed a cap on the number of animal units farms can have in one operation. Exceptions cannot and should not be made to this cap simply because an operation wants to bring in more money.”

“Animal unit caps are commonsense avenues for protecting water resources while shielding local communities from the kind of unprecedented consolidation that is putting small and mid-sized farmers out of business and decimating Main Street economies,” said Sean Carroll, LSP’s Policy Director. “The Daley proposal, if it had gone through, would have made this concentrated animal feeding operation larger than 99% of all livestock operations in the state, according to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency’s Feedlots in Minnesota database.”

“We need a farm economy that does not incentivize the endless expansion of our farms,” said Ridgeway, Minn., dairy farmer Mike Gilles. “The natural end result of this current system will lead to a Winona County with few farms, fewer farmers and fragile rural communities. We need a farm economy that works for Winona County, not for expansion.”

Daley, backed by supporters of industrialized livestock farming on the state level, has repeatedly attempted to circumvent local county government rulings through various means, including suing Winona County over its BOA decision. It also filed a separate lawsuit against individual citizens and LSP in an attempt to silence people who have spoken out against the proposal. That latter lawsuit, which is similar to SLAPP (Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation) strategies utilized by factory farm supporters in other parts of the Midwest, was dropped by Daley earlier this year.

Carroll said Daley’s multiple lawsuits are a waste of local public resources that could be better spent supporting a resilient farm economy.

“We have incredible opportunities to support numerous farmers who are building healthy soil and producing food in a way that supports and builds local wealth,” he said. “Allowing one special interest to utilize the legal system to gobble up public resources in an effort to advance their own growth isn’t good for the community, the economy or the land.”

During the past few years, LSP and its allies have learned of several communities in the Midwest that are facing similar intimidation tactics as factory farm proposers and their backers attempt to circumvent local democracy and the will of the people. As a result, LSP is launching a special initiative to collect the stories of rural residents who question the “get big or get out” narrative and the power and bullying tactics wielded by Big Ag. For the next 12 months, the “LSP Story Center Powerline” initiative is seeking reports and stories from rural residents across the Midwest who are being confronted with such intimidation and are fighting back, or seeking ways of fighting back.

“Through local organizing and by listening to people, LSP has learned that when we are given a chance to speak out about the kind of future we’d like to see on the landscape, it results in action to create healthy, resilient communities,” said Carroll. “Silence only benefits the ones who already have a powerful voice.”

Stories can be recorded at the LSP Story Center Powerline page: https://landstewardshipproject.org/powerline/.

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Category: News Releases
Tags: CAFO • Daley Farm • factory farm • local democracy • Winona County

Contact

Sean Carroll, LSP Policy Director, e-mail, 763-297-1931

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Wednesday September 17

9:00 am – 3:00 pm
Grazing for Invasive Species Management in Oak Savannas
Wednesday September 17
9:00 am – 3:00 pm
Grazing for Invasive Species Management in Oak Savannas
Myre-Big Island State Park, 19499 780th Ave, Albert Lea, MN 56007, USA

For details on this workshop, click here.

12:00 pm – 2:00 pm
Extending the Grazing Season with Cover Crops & Native Grasses
Wednesday September 17
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Extending the Grazing Season with Cover Crops & Native Grasses
Bluffton Resort & Bar, 2619 W Ravine Rd, Decorah, IA 52101, USA

This Ducks Unlimited workshop will feature a discussion of how livestock producers can utilize cover crops and native grasses to extend the grazing season. Featured speakers include Adam Janke, who will discuss Iowa State University’s research on CRP grazing, and Brian Dougherty of Understanding AG, who will discuss the economics of grazing cover crops. There will also be a presentation on Ducks Unlimited’s Advancing Markets for Producers Partnership. 
 
For details, see this flier. or call Ducks Unlimited’s Liam Bonk at 612-483-3577. To register, click here.

Thursday September 18

5:00 pm – 7:30 pm
Minnesota Women in Conservation: Conservation Land Walk in Dawson
Thursday September 18
5:00 pm – 7:30 pm
Minnesota Women in Conservation: Conservation Land Walk in Dawson
Dawson, MN

During this Minnesota Women in Conservation event, participants will walk around a “homestead” farm site — exploring areas and goals the landowner hopes to improve in the future, including pollinator habitat, perennial plantings, wind breaks, privacy/noise screens, water quality improvements, well sealing, and compost placements. Participants will hear feedback and recommendations from a conservation professional on potential programs that could assist the landowner in achieving those goals. 
 
This is a FREE event, but you must RSVP here to get the address. For more information and to RSVP, click here.

Saturday September 20

All Day
Farm Aid
Saturday September 20
Farm Aid
Huntington Bank Stadium, 420 23rd Ave SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA

 Farm Aid is heading to Minnesota for the first time for its 40th anniversary festival on Saturday, Sept. 20, at Huntington Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. The event will launch a year-long celebration of four decades of impactful advocacy, historic cultural moments and unforgettable music.

Farm Aid 40 — a full day of music, family farmers, HOMEGROWN food and agricultural experiences — will feature performances by Farm Aid board members Willie Nelson, Neil Young (and the Chrome Hearts), John Mellencamp, Dave Matthews (with Tim Reynolds), and Margo Price, as well as Billy Strings, Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats, Trampled by Turtles, Waxahatchee, Eric Burton of Black Pumas, Jesse Welles, Madeline Edwards and more artists to be announced.

For details, click here.

Monday September 22

9:00 am – 3:00 pm
Twin Cities Urban Farm Bus Tour
Monday September 22
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Twin Cities Urban Farm Bus Tour
Leatherdale Equine Center, 1801 Dudley Ave, St Paul, MN 55108, USA

Join University of Minnesota Extension, Hennepin County, and the Natural Resources Conservation Service on Monday, Sept. 22, for a bus tour of urban farms. We’ll discuss the challenges of city growing, including compaction, contamination, soil health, water management, and more. And we’ll learn about how growers are using soil health practices to mitigate these challenges. Stops will include: 

  • The St. Thomas research gardens, where researchers have been studying different methods for maintaining fertility in urban garden beds for 8+ years, and learning about how these different approaches impact soil health and water quality
  • Our Roots Community Garden, where gardeners have implemented a variety of soil health practices to remediate a brownfield contaminated site into a lush garden with healthy soil and plants. Gardeners here are also working to establish a micro forest at the site
  • Urban Roots farm at Rivoli Bluff. The team at Urban Roots has worked for years to establish a thriving farm at a former street sweeping site. They’ve tried many different practices to address compaction, replace invasive species with native plants to mitigate erosion, and to grow vegetables for their community. 

This is the first tour in a three part soil health bus tour series. Participants can sign up for just one, two, or all three tours. Register at https://z.umn.edu/vegetablebustours. The cost is $15 (flat fee, covers 1, 2, or 3 tours). There are more details in the attached flyer.

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