Texas Dairy Review (Stephenville, Tex.), Vol. 1, No. 7, Ed. 1 Thursday, September 3, 1992 Page: 2 of 24
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PACK ft
TEXAS DAVY iftVEW
Speakers
ben Concerned Citizens and the John Traweek, who manages a
Sierra Club to sue 34 Tens 400-head family dairy in Erath
dairies for not having National County that has been in existence
Pollutant Discharge Elimination for 25 yearn, spoke on behalf of
System (NPDES) permits. the Texas Association of Dairy-
A question and answer period men (TAD),
was conducted in the afternoon He voiced two major objections
followed by a public comment to the proposed EPA general
hearing that evening. Addressing permit regarding expenses and
the EPA regulations were several recordkeeping, pointing out the
speakers from around the state dairymen’s perplexity in a complex
including Jerry Clark, ' AMPI; situation.
Dwight Pittman, a certified “i„ light of President Bush’s
engineer, Dr. John Sweeten, Texas directive that the Administration
A&M; Ned Meister, Farm Bureau ease the regulatory burden sttan-
lobbyist; Ross Wilson, Texas at- gijng small businesses in America,
tie Feeders Association; Gary dairymen are stunned by what is
Lloyd, a* dairy consultant from being asked of them and espe-
Erath County; Trish DeBold, dally when they must meet some
Erath County dairy owner, John 0f the strictest standards in the
Traweek, TAD representative; country in order to be permitted
D.Keith Chapman, art Riley, by the Texas Water Commission,”
Travis Brown, Normon Roe, and Traweek said.
Ken Horton. “Perhaps 1 should start off by
saying that —if there is one point current Texas Water Commission rations required to obtain NPDES
I hope to get across to everyone permitting requirements. For my permits. He said TAD recognized
listening today—it is that no one 400-cow dairy, which appraxi- the precedent set by the U.S. Fifth
cares more about the environment mates the average size for Erath Circuit of Appeals in the Can v.
than those of us who live on and County, this amounts to $40,000 Alta Verde Industries case which
make our living from the land. As to $80,000. While I am pleased to may necessitate their participation
a steward of the land, there isn’t be able to comply with these in this process,
anyone who has a greater interest requirements, this amount to a “Ever since EPA defined
in the sustainability of my dairy sunk cost upon which I will see no CAFOs, we have been relying on
operation than I do,” he added. return on my investment. their interpretation of who is
He pointed out that under “EPA regulators have per- reqUjred to obtain NPDES per-
Texas Water Commission regula- sonally witnessed some of these that the pjth cfrc^t
lions, dairymen are making im- tremendous strides in the dairy has heW t0 a different
mense progress in updating was- industry, and so I ask you—who interpretation, EPA is suddenly
tewater management systems. “In else is better able to assess a on a fast track that threatens to
many cases, we have spent far problem and implement a solu- thrust exptremely complex, costly
more than necessary to meet tion than dairy farmers them- an(| potentially crippling regula-
Water Commission standards out selves?” - tions upon formers who have had
of our genuine concern for the Traweek continued saying that uttle time to respond. In fairness
environment. any dairy or feeding operation to Texas producers, we believe
“The public must understand permitted by the Texas Water there is a more prudent
that the average Texas dairyman Commission has been excluded approach.”
has already spent between $100 from the EPA’s own definition of
and $200 per cow to comply with Confined Animal Feeding, ope- Sec Speakers on Page 3
Groups
Coatiaaed from Page 1
cerned Citizens, public hff&ring
requests were dropped on John
Heavyside, Glen Armstrong, J.L.
Crouch, Robert Lueck, Mike
Uoyd, Klaas Talsma, Dowell Well
Service, and Phil Bradberry of
Hamilton. The letter stated that
the group still reserves the right
to become a party to a public
hearing on these applicants and
others. It did not state why the
requests fro public hearings in
these cases has been dropped.
In the past few months, the
TWC has asked that those who
ask for a public hearing on dairy
applicants regarding waste/
wa tewater permits submit their
reasons or objections in writing,
Previously, the TWC has granted
public hearings without this
requirement.
John Heavyside, Glen Arm-
strong and J.L Crouch had
already been approved for permits
before this request by the Cross
Timbers Concerned Citizens was
received by the TWC
Mike Lloyd and Robert Lueck
dairies have alteqdy been schedu-
led for public hearings in Austin
during the month of September.
Although the Cross Timbers
Concerned Citizens have dropped
their complaint against Phil Brad-
berry Dairy, his application is
being protested by two other par-
ties.
Dowell Well Service has been
tenalively scheduled on the
agenda for formal TWC approval
for Sept. 3ft
An Editorial
The Dairyman’s Plight:
Ironic, contradictory,
unique?
It should be quite dear that we
all owe a lot to the Erath County
dairy industry. But, unfortunately,
as the silent majority continues to
sleep its life away, the voices that
cry the loudest are the only ones
that are heard. And, I think we’ve
heard just about enough of them.
While our dairy industry sup-
plies us with enriching food to
keep us healthy and economic
success to fill our pockets, many
areas who do not have such
economic support have all but
withered and died. We, in Erath
County, are fortunate that our
dairies have kept us alive and it
should touch the heart, awaken a
dead vein, or at least evoke a
feeling as to what consequences
we might face should our dairies
suddenly be gone.
Evidenced in the great amount
of emotional and physical
strength it has taken for our dairy
fomilies'to survive these past few
years, we should be proud they
are not quitters. While they have
repeatedly been singled-out, sub-
jected to public scrutiny and
attacked by so-called environmen-
tal interest groups, the fact
remains they are able to with-
stand -to overcome—and to
remain in the game, even though
the deck clearly has been stacked.
Dairy families are victims— i
caught in the middle—of a multi-1
faceted series of problems that
basically exists among specific
minority environmentalists and1
state and federal beauracrats.!
Hence, it’s beyond the world of
reason—a mystery, or perhaps a
comedy, how the beauracrats have
allowed themselves to be control-
led by such a slim, margin of
people whose contributions to life
amount to hanging around in
Austin or at the Erath County
Courthouse for public hearings.
Unlike those who have nothing
better to do, dairy families don’t
have the time for such nonsense.
They are content to go on with
their lives should they be allowed
to do so. Plain and simple, dairies
are a unique combination of busi-
ness and family. Their job is not
the normal 8 to 5 work routine.
Theirs is a 24-hour working rela-
■ tkmship. And what problems they
must endure in their businesses is
ingratiated in their lives, 24-
hours-a-day.
This of course includes environ-
mental concerns, which they must
also deal with on a 24-hour basis.
And when the rainfall begins, and
the rest of the world is sleeping,
See Plight oa Page 3
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Texas Dairy Review
Stephenville, Texas
Texas Dairy Review
A publication to serve and preserve the
Texas Dairy Industry
Published By
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Stephenville, TX. 76401
(817)965-2255
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Webb, Sherry. Texas Dairy Review (Stephenville, Tex.), Vol. 1, No. 7, Ed. 1 Thursday, September 3, 1992, newspaper, September 3, 1992; Stephenville, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth768427/m1/2/?q=war: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; .