Group applauds Adair County moratorium on livestock lots

A citizens action group is applauding a decision by the Adair County supervisors this week to re-establish a one-year moratorium on the construction of large scale factory farms. Barb Kalbach is the regional chairperson for Adair-Madison Citizens for Community Improvement. She says they’ve had two boards of health study the issue and both came to the same conclusion that they felt the water quality for rural citizens was inadequately protected by current laws. She says the state legislation on the issue is moving too slow to protect people. She says the air quality regulations of the new legislation won’t go into effect until 2004 and the actual enforcement won’t start until 2007. Kalbach hopes the year-long moratorium put in place by the supervisors will give move time for tougher state regulations to get in place. She says they hope to find some way to ensure the safety of local citizens if large confinements move in next to them. Kalbach credits the supervisors and board of health for taking action.She says they’re trying to move ahead in an area that’s very slow to move ahead. She says they have the best interests of their constituents at heart in taking action. The vote by the Adair County supervisors to approve the moratorium was 3-2.