Opposing the chicken-factory expansion

Joyce Otto has more details on the proposed expansion of the Fremont Farms chicken factories. It involves two sites in Poweshiek County:

• East of Grinnell, northwest of Malcom. The application submitted to the Board of Supervisors proposed two additional buildings, to accommodate 525,000 laying chickens each, and the completion of a building for storing dry manure. This would raise the total number of chickens at this site to 7,630,000.
• Southwest of Malcom, in Pleasant Township (section 3). The application sought four new barns, each holding 250,000 chicken pullets (chicks to adults) and a new structure for stockpiling dry manure. This would raise the total number of chickens at this site to 2,281,200.

The first public hearing on these proposals will be held on Thursday, December 19, at 8:30 a.m., in the Supervisors' Room at the county courthouse at Montezuma. A second public hearing on the same expansions will be held at the same location on Monday, January 6, at 8:30 a.m. [Update, December 20: The second public hearing on the expansion of the first site has been moved up to Monday, December 30, at 8:30 a.m. The second site will still be discussed at the January 6 hearing.]

Joyce writes:

Your attendance at these meetings is very important! Don't hesitate to share your thoughts!

Poweshiek citizens must protect our county from more contamination (because our government will not!) Unless WE stand up for our rights—clean air and protection of property values—our community will be devalued even more!

These huge confinement corporations think only about more money, not the human beings that are affected by toxic gases and odors, lowering our quality of life and property values.

The cities of Grinnell and Malcom already live with odors from Fremont Farms—why should they have to live with 1,050,000 more chickens to smell? Citizens of Pleasant Township will live with these pullet barns and their 23,150 confined hogs! More? Really? When is enough enough? Quality of life on your own property is a basic human right! We have to fight for that right! Stand up for all citizens' rights and tell them NO MORE!

Besides attending the supervisors' meetings there are other actions to take! All notes we send must accompany the the applications. Let's give them hundreds!

1. Make your voice heard through emails and/or letters. You can send the same note/letter to all the supervisors, DNR staff and legislatures. Be as detailed as you wish. You can also phone them. My letter will be short and direct. Do your letter now! A few words is better than nothing.
   • Larry Wilson, Poweshiek County Board of Supervisors, 1512 Fourth Avenue, Grinnell, Iowa 50112 (poweshieksupervisorwilson@gmail.com)
   • Lamoyne Gaard, Poweshiek County Board of Supervisors, 931 Summer Street, Grinnell, Iowa 50112 (lamoyne@iowatelecom.net)
   • Trevor White, Poweshiek County Board of Supervisors, 3751 V18 Road, Brooklyn, Iowa 52211 (tnpwhite@netins.net)
   • Chuck Gipp, Director of the Department of Natural Resources, 502 East Ninth Street, Des Moines, Iowa 50319–0034 (chuck.gipp@dnr.iowa.gov)
   • Paul Petitti, Environmental Engineer, Department of Natural Resources, 1900 North Grand Avenue, Spencer, Iowa 51301 (paul.petitti@dnr.iowa.gov)
Ted Petersen, Field Staff Supervisor, Department of Natural Resources, 401 Southwest Seventh Street, Suite I, Des Moines, Iowa 50309 (ted.petersen@dnr.iowa.gov)
2. David Maxwell, State Representative (dave.maxwell@legis.iowa.gov)
3. Tim Kapucian, State Senator (tim.kapucian@legis.iowa.gov)
4. Attachments to this email: Newspaper notification, Lists of residents that own land within one mile of the sites being expanded. If you know any of these people, talk to them. If they express a need for support, Poweshiek CARES would like to help them (jotto@iowatelecom.com). Please give them give them CCI's phone number (515–282–0484) as well—they have great, knowledgable staff to assist.
5. Forward this information to everyone you know who is tired of our countryside being filled with huge animal confinements!
6. Write a letter to the editor. (I have information of where to send them.)