Dale Reichel
California
Dear Editor:
Do you think Mike Bernskoetter or Sara Walsh live by or would live close to a CAFO (confined animal feeding operation)? I bet not.
There are 10,000-plus CAFOs in Iowa. Iowa has over 700 significantly polluted bodies of water.
In 2013 the Missouri Legislature changed the law. Now foreign entities can own Missouri farmland. Nothing should be wrong with that. But you know how money talks.
Asthma cases increase close to CAFOs, studies show. CAFOs create millions of gallons of waste, poop, etc. I could go on and on about the negative aspects of CAFOs, but I only have so many words.
The Missouri Rural Crisis Center can give you more information. You can contact Brian Smith at 573-449-1336 or [email protected].
Senate Bill 391 is law, but not retroactive. Moniteau County has until Aug. 28 to pass health ordinances on CAFOs. DNR rules are too weak.
Smithfield Foods, a Chinese corporation, now owns 40,000 acres of Missouri farmland. Don't you think we need some rules?
At 5 p.m. July 15 the Moniteau County Health Board will have another meeting at the California Nutrition Center. Maybe your caring representatives will be there. You can contact the board. The health administrator is Andrea Kincaid, 573-796-3412, or [email protected].
If you think these CAFOs will create lots of jobs, better think again. They do stink though. Beware, Cole County.