Residents Battle Dairy Farm Operation on Yakama Reservation

May 28, 2008

by- Shelley Bluejay Pierce

http://www.tanasijournal.com/main/index.php?option=com_news_portal&Itemid=333

TOPPENISH, Washington- Yakama tribal and non-Native residents have joined together in protesting a new dairy farm that may house as many as 7,000 cows. Earlier media reports claim that more than 470 signatures on a petition to stop the construction of the dairy farm were submitted to Yakama tribal managers for review.

Similar to an ongoing battle on the Yankton Sioux reservation in South Dakota against a large commercial hog farm, many tribes are complaining of the new rush to use tribal lands as commercial agriculture business sites.

The proposed dairy farm in Washington State is another case of non-Native residents who purchase lands inside the tribal reservation lands or boundaries and due to a lack of zoning restrictions in place, move forward with permitting for large-scale animal production farms.

All plans for such operations must be approved through the permitting process by the Environmental Protection Agency and then be approved by the county and tribal leadership. However, residents in these areas are fearful that all environmental rules and regulations will not be followed or adequately monitored. Farm owners continue to insist that their new installations are equipped with state-of-the-art technology that would prevent any risks to the environment.

In the case of the property on the Yakama reservation, the family who purchased the 480 acres owns the property while the tribe maintains jurisdiction over the use of the groundwater. Residents in the area are currently involved in a lawsuit targeting a 12,000-cow feedlot that is also located near their homes. Some complaints against that feedlot are respiratory ailments and gastrointestinal complications since the feedlot reportedly doubled in size in 2002.

Earlier press reports state that some residents have nitrate levels measuring more than twice the safe drinking water limits. Nitrates are commonly seen as by-products in the areas near feedlots and dairies or in agricultural areas that use large amounts of fertilizers.

Nearby the current feedlot and proposed dairy farm on Yakama is the Toppenish National Wildlife Refuge. Situated alongside Toppenish Creek, the 1,763-acre wildlife refuge is made up of wetlands and sagebrush uplands serve which serve as nesting grounds for up to 30,000 migratory waterfowl. Various species of raptors, marsh birds, shorebirds and resident songbirds dwell in the area as well. According to the website information for this federally protected refuge, "Toppenish Creek serves an important role as one of the last remaining streams where Columbia River steelhead, one of America's endangered species, still reproduce in good numbers."

Residents battling the enormous CAFO style hog farm on the Yankton Reservation have also voiced their concerns over the potential impacts upon the nearby Missouri River. Manure lagoons and various containment methods for these large scale operations are clearly evident in the permitting processes though residents who have had these large commercial operations nearby still reveal water well and surface water contamination.

Local property values drop when commercial farms such as the proposed dairy farm on the Yakama reservation as well as the hog farm in Yankton, South Dakota appear in the communities. Air quality, water purity and surface water contaminations have also been heavily documented by environmental agencies and non-profit organizations that monitor these areas of commercial farming.

Both the Yakama and Yankton reservation communities are continuing to investigate their options surrounding the allowance for these types of commercial operations in their tribal communities.