LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations

Letters to the Editor | March 10th, 2016

To the Editor:

I was raised on our family farm near Buffalo, North Dakota. After college I served in the U.S. Army, worked in the Fargo Public Schools and eventually returned to my hometown of Buffalo about thirty years ago. I am a past Mayor of the community and am involved in our American Legion Post #10, the City of Buffalo Historic Preservation Commission, the Buffalo Community Club and the City Park Board.

The proposed Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation, or CAFO, to be located two miles southeast of Buffalo could be devastating to the quality of life I enjoy now with my friends, family and neighbors in our small community of about 200.

Our group of Concerned Citizens in Buffalo is certainly not opposed to animal agriculture but resistant to corporate control and potential devastation of our water and air quality, and much more.

I challenge Rep. Wayne Trottier to find and show us communities who feel they are better off with this type of factory farming. They have to live with the enormous economic, ecological, social and health issues. Our rural families and the people of Buffalo certainly would.

It simply is not true that the employees of this hog operation will be our neighbors, friends or families. The employees will not be family farmers. This is much different from what makes North Dakota a leader in agriculture. We’ve been leaders because of our strong family farmers and ranchers who own their farms and understand what it means to be connected to the community where they live and work.

Studies and experience show that the number of animals may increase from the proposed 9,000 pig facility to include other CAFO’s throughout the I94 corridor. I am very concerned that my community, the county and the entire state of North

Dakota will not recover from such an expansion of Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations. I would rather have 100 farmers producing 9,000 hogs than l factory farm producing the same number.

As part of the Concerned Citizens of Buffalo, I want to encourage people to do their own research to learn about the huge impact of this type of factory farming. You can read about our story and concerns at our site set up by the Concerned

Citizens of Buffalo at https://www.gofundme.com/wwny5w7w. Please show your support and help us have a voice in our destiny.

--Bill Marcks

Concerned Citizen of Buffalo

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