Michigan Right to Farm Law, what does it mean?

[ernurse]

Thank you for your thorough reply, I appologize for my long delay of response. I have been away from my computer for the past week.

I cannot attend next weeks meeting, but I would be interested in attending any future meetings. I am not sure if my situation is different, but altogether the same, I do have chickens and turkeys as well as the pigs. I am close to New Baltimore too.

There seem to be many layers to these sort of situations which I have since discovered through recent research. In part of my reading, one of the court of appeals cases, the judge stated although he may not completely agree with the right to farm and it potentially being a little too close for the neighbors comfort, he stated that it was the legislature of the state and he was to judge in accordance with the law, in which he did.

I will follow this forum thread and hope to make the next meeting.

 

[blackswan]

Thank you for your thorough reply, I appologize for my long delay of response. I have been away from my computer for the past week.

I cannot attend next weeks meeting, but I would be interested in attending any future meetings. I am not sure if my situation is different, but altogether the same, I do have chickens and turkeys as well as the pigs. I am close to New Baltimore too.

There seem to be many layers to these sort of situations which I have since discovered through recent research. In part of my reading, one of the court of appeals cases, the judge stated although he may not completely agree with the right to farm and it potentially being a little too close for the neighbors comfort, he stated that it was the legislature of the state and he was to judge in accordance with the law, in which he did.

I will follow this forum thread and hope to make the next meeting.

I am working on coverage here at work to make the Oct 31 meeting...perhaps we can carpool since we are 'close'?

PM me offline for more info.

 

[eldenbrady]

It was said earlier that the 80% of those who live in urban areas are those who are affected, but this will affect those living in urban areas as well.

I have been struggling to find out of town land that is zoned for agriculture. Increasingly, rural land is zoned so that agriculture is either a special use or not allowed at all. Rural residential designation for homes on large tracts is common as are land conservancy zoning designations. Of those parcels over 20 acres within 20 miles of Muskegon I would estimate that half of them will be removed from protection by this change. Additionally, the change to applying the setbacks to any number of animals will means that hose on a few acres will often be unable to have any animals no matter what the zoning because they cannot meet the 100+ foot setbacks.

Effectively this eliminates the 1999 amendment.

 

[RaZ]

The 80% referred to the entire state population. There is only 20% designated agricultural land in the whole state.
If the the proposed 2013 GAAMP changes take place, even areas that now allow chickens may lose the protection provided by state law.

This is a terrible assault on what many consider to be the best law in the nation for protecting rights farmers. Anti-farming suburbs are already lining up to press charges against backyard gardeners and chicken keepers.

Please call or write to MDARD, Ag Commission, Farm Bureau and your state senators and representatives for helps.
Also contact Mr. Deacon who led the public review of the GAAMPs on August 22, 2012.

Brad Deacon
Emergency Management &
Administrative Law Coordinator
Michigan Department of Agriculture &
Rural Development
[email protected]
517-241-4085

 

[wingless]

Effectively this eliminates the 1999 amendment.

Agreed.

I spoke to Matt Kapp from the Michigan Farm Bureau earlier this week, and asked him directly whether he also agrees that the changes proposed to the 2013 GAAMPS reverse the 1999 amendment, and he does. He also said that the Michigan Farm Bureau opposes these changes, and that he submitted comments to that effect to the GAAMPS review committee.

An important point, of course, is that the 1999 amendment was approved by the state legislature, and this attempt at reversal will be accomplished instead by a non-elected, 5-member Commission, with very little discussion or input from concerned parties. And that is because no one expects to find this kind radical change to RTF protection to show up in proposed GAAMPS changes, because before the 2012 changes, they never did. The 2012 changes to the preamble and these 2013 proposed changes are a new kind of GAAMPS language newly invented to exempt huge numbers of Michiganders from RTF protection, regardless of good agricultural management practices or protection of the environment or public health.

Also important to know is that the 5-member Agriculture Commission has never opposed a GAAMPS change proposed by MDARD. So although this language may appear radical and unjustified to us, we still have a very big battle in front of us. Two different knowledgeable people told me this week that we are very likely to lose this battle, and with it Right to Farm protection, during the December 12th Ag Commission vote. If you care about this now is the time to engage.

 

[wingless]

The two best ways to engage to maintain RTF protection between now and the December 12th Ag Commission vote:

First, if you can get to a meeting I think you'll discover that the people working to promote agriculture in Michigan - both the commissioners and the folks from MDARD - are sincere, well-intentioned people. (Yes, I think that, even though these are the same people who will likely deny us the same RTF protection that the 1999 Michigan legislature voted to provide for us.) If you go, then they can see that those of us with urban and residential agriculture operations are also sincere and well-intentioned, and that it would be a mistake to exclude us from their overall efforts. MDARD, the Ag Commission, and Backyard Farmers are all interested in promoting the same thing: agriculture in Michigan. We should all be working together. Getting to that point might require that we show up at their meetings so we can bridge whatever gaps exist, and move forward more productively.

The Ag Commission schedule is below. Again, this 5-member Commission will vote on December 12th on whether or not to approve changes to the 2013 Site Selection GAAMPS. If the Ag Commission approves these changes, most of us here (anyone living on land that is not zoned "agricultural") will lose RTF protection. Thus we are advocating that the Ag Commission vote NO to proposed changes to the 2013 Site Selection GAAMPS.


Wed., Sept. 12, 2012 Coopersville Farm Museum
9:00 a.m. 375 Main Street, Coopersville, MI

Wed., Oct. 31, 2012 Constitution Hall, ConCon Room
9:00 a.m. 525 W. Allegan St., Lansing

Wed., Dec. 12, 2012 GreenStone Farm Credit Services, Room 112
9:00 a.m. 3515 West Road, East Lansing


Second, if you can't make a meeting, you can write them a letter or an email, or can call. Their contact info is here:


Contact Information
Michigan Commission of Agriculture & Rural Development
P.O.Box 30017
Lansing, MI 48909

517-335-3402 (Voice)
517-373-1104 (TTY)
[email protected]

 

[laughingclown]

Ok, I sent an email to Mr. Deacon, The Department of Agriculture, My State Senator and State Representative. We will see. I pray for all of us that we win this. But unfortunately the norm nowadays are we the people getting pushed to the wayside.

 

[wingless]

A few weeks ago I contacted Taylor Reid at beginningfarmers.org to see if he would join our effort to oppose these changes, and he asked me to write something for his website. I finally got that done, and he posted it early this morning. Still needs some formatting fixes at the end, but here it is:

http://www.beginningfarmers.org/urban-agriculture-in-michigan-threatened-by-new-rules/

 

[TaylorBF]

Working on reformatting the post right now.
-Taylor

 

[wingless]

Wow, Taylor, it's so funny to see you here. Welcome to BYC, and thanks for all the good work you're doing on your own website to help beginning farmers!