Michigan Right to Farm Law, what does it mean?

[cowcreekgeek]

The opinion of the Court is that 1) and 2) is to be interpreted as an *or* and they provided the legal precedent req'd to have any case based upon *and* dismissed.

Of greater concern, in the wider scope of all this, is that municipalities have no legal right to have private arrangements w/ anybody -- anything your officials base their actions upon is *my* information, and *your* information, and it is req'd that they provide any informations requested under the Freedom of Information Act, unless they can argue that it endangers national security ... clearly, exposing their communications doesn't place anything at risk, other than their intentions:

Request under FOIA, and then take action against any that fail to comply w/ the law.

 

[cowcreekgeek]

Quote:Originally Posted by wingless


Hey everybody -

The USDA is doing a census of farming operations across the country of ALL sizes.

This is extremely easy, and is a great way to let the USDA know that small farming operations are strong and growing in Michigan.

Link is here: https://www.agcounts.usda.gov/cgi-bin/counts

And in case you have doubts, here is the full set of survey questions (should take about 20 seconds to fill out!)

This is similar to the Census our government does on our people, and the same laws apply -- those of us, such as myself, that received the form are req'd by law to respond, and they are req'd to protect the personal informations contained w/in our response(s).

My form had a number that had been assigned to my operation, which you might need in order to participate (not sure about that part). But, for certain: All that recieve the form need to send it in quickly, as they've extended the deadline (failure to do so may result in fines).

 

[SillyChicken]

Thanks for this advice, shadygrove.

I am having an initial MAEAP inspection in Ann Arbor on February 12th, and was asked by the MAEAP verifier to invite anyone else who might be interested in this program. PM me if you'd like to attend.

Dang Wingless.. I wish I knew about this....... I would have come. Guess I should check this thread more often.

How did it go?

 

[wingless]

Well that is a darn it (as my son would say) - it would have been nice to include you!

It started out being a little daunting, since the Livestock MAEAP document covers all kinds of livestock (like dairy cows) that I don't have. But after 30-40 minutes or so we got through the whole book, and for my simple backyard flock I was lacking 3 main things:

1. Soil Tests. I plan on fixing this using the service from MSU: http://msusoiltest.com

2. Soil-type Assesment. They want to know what kind of soil you have, based on state or federal records. I used this site to get that information for my area: http://websoilsurvey.nrcs.usda.gov/app/WebSoilSurvey.aspx

3. Composter. There are a lot of requirements around manure management, and pretty much all of them can be resolved by getting some kind of composter rather than keeping an open pile on the ground in the back corner of the yard. A composter is not required, but for me it is the easiest solution, so I think I'll take it.

Note that there are also lots of other changes that I'll need to make in terms of keeping and organizing records - but these three things stood out as needing to get done before I take the next step. Also note that we only talked about the Livestock MAEAP, and I may also have to meet the requirements of the Farmstead MAEAP - I just don't know yet.

The really terrific thing is that the MAEAP Tech was outstanding. She was friendly, informative, and committed to both agriculture and environmental stewardship. It was refreshing to work with someone from MDARD willing to help me do a better job at keeping chickens.

MAEAP website is here: http://www.maeap.org.

 

[shadygrovefarm]

Hello all. I just want to make it very clear to everyone that in order to be protected by the MRTFA, you MUST be GAAMP compliant. Not every GAAMP applies to every farm. Each farm is unique in what GAAMP's apply. That being said, you do NOT have to be compliant with EVERY GAAMP, only the ones that apply to your operation. Now, in order to prove GAAMP compliance, your best bet is the MAEAP Verification process. This IS the main reason we won our case. So, if you want to be protected you need to prove you are GAAMP compliant. The MAEAP process is free (other than soil tests, water testing, etc.), but their services are free. If you read Judge Solka's opinion/ruling/summary of our case, which I have posted in the last couple of pages of this thread, you will see the importance of us achieving the MAEAP Verified status. I am NOT a lawyer, but I did deal with this for over 41 months before winning. You are simply NOT protected because you have intent to be commercial or because you ARE commercial. Proving GAAMP compliance is crucial! Please, contact your Conservation District and ask to speak to a MAEAP Technician to get started! Here is the link again ~ http://www.maeap.org/. Please, have your chickens in a row so that when your local municipality starts bullying, you are prepared to answer with facts, knowledge and better "weapons" to win the "war"! Had we been MAEAP verified before our township filed to take us to court, they would most likely have had to pay ALL of our legal expenses! Imagine the power of a HUGE group of verified farms in "urban" settings!? We must be the change we wish to see...

 

[RaZ]

One thing that the MAEAP tech pointed out to us was that even though we have the right to request this service they would prefer that small operations be patient in obtaining the certification. Their primary objective is to get large-scale operations (i.e. CAFOs) on board with the programme. It was noted that Governor Snyder wants 5000 farms certified by 2015.

With small farm operations that should be an attainable goal. However, the tech emphasized that small farms are not having an environmental impact like the large operations do. It was suggested that the time it takes to certify small farms would be used to go after the big guys. It is a matter of reduced personnel and haw to get the biggest bang for the buck.

The following day, at the Agriculture Commisioner's meeting, changes to federal and state laws regarding food safety are being implemented but not funded. This will further stretch MDARD personnel. The commissioners are concerned that small farms might slip through the cracks while large operations receive the greater attention.

So whereas we small farmers seemed to be largely ignored in the past, we are now on the radar. And while MAEAP is stretched thin for personnel, I think that we should stay in close contact with them (and MDARD) and ask for the certifications as much as we can. But we can help the process by making sure that we are compliant with the process prior to asking for an inspection.

BTW, my trial is scheduled to commence on Tuesday (Feb. 21 at 8:30 am). I have my MAEAP workbook all ready.

 

[RaZ]

Update.
My court case has once again been delayed. I now have to wait another two (2) months.

 

[shadygrovefarm]

Update.
My court case has once again been delayed. I now have to wait another two (2) months.

Well, it sounds like you are prepared! With these court cases, we all must have the 5 P's...Persistence, Positivity, Politeness, Perserverance and Patience! Them delaying your case doesn't change the laws or the facts. I know it can be frustrating, but hang in there! Yes, when the MAEAP tech showed up at our farm, she was "confused". She was used to doing mono crop type farms, not small diverse, permaculture style operations. But, she really liked it and thought it was great! We need to keep encouraging small farms to go for the MAEAP Verification as it doesn't matter how small or large a farm is, we ALL need to be environmentally conscious. Could you PM me more info about your case?

 

[WashtenawFarmer]

Well, it sounds like you are prepared! With these court cases, we all must have the 5 P's...Persistence, Positivity, Politeness, Perserverance and Patience! Them delaying your case doesn't change the laws or the facts. I know it can be frustrating, but hang in there! Yes, when the MAEAP tech showed up at our farm, she was "confused". She was used to doing mono crop type farms, not small diverse, permaculture style operations. But, she really liked it and thought it was great! We need to keep encouraging small farms to go for the MAEAP Verification as it doesn't matter how small or large a farm is, we ALL need to be environmentally conscious. Could you PM me more info about your case?

I absolutely agree about the importance of being environmentally conscious, but I also think it's important not to completely equate MAEAP certification (or the pursuit of it) with environmental consciousness. A farm can be MAEAP certified and still use pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, antibiotics and so on that we would never use on our non-MAEAP certified farm, just for example.

Environmental consciousness can be manifested in many ways, including some which would not allow MAEAP certification.

I also think it's important to applaud what people can do in this regard and be non-judgmental, even if they can't pursue MAEAP certification--or choose to pursue, given limited resources, other environmental goals (organics, native prairie or wetland restoration, and so on).

 

[shadygrovefarm]

I absolutely agree about the importance of being environmentally conscious, but I also think it's important not to completely equate MAEAP certification (or the pursuit of it) with environmental consciousness. A farm can be MAEAP certified and still use pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, antibiotics and so on that we would never use on our non-MAEAP certified farm, just for example.

Environmental consciousness can be manifested in many ways, including some which would not allow MAEAP certification.

I also think it's important to applaud what people can do in this regard and be non-judgmental, even if they can't pursue MAEAP certification--or choose to pursue, given limited resources, other environmental goals (organics, native prairie or wetland restoration, and so on).

I agree Washtenaw Farmer. I am not saying MAEAP confirms environmental consciousness. I am saying it will most likely be required for Right to Farm protection. That was the main reason the judge ruled in our favor is because we got that verification to prove GAAMP compliance. Without that, there really is no PROOF of being compliant.