My wife and I both serve in local government in our township of Gilman, which recently adopted an operations ordinance to address common concerns about CAFOs in our town. Several nearby towns have passed or are considering similar ordinances due to the massive expansion of an existing CAFO in our county. Prior to the DNR permit request from Ridge Breeze to expand from roughly 2,500 animal units to nearly 10,000, our township was already dealing with the costs these types of industrial scale operations socialize while privatizing all of their profits. Everyone who lives here has experienced the long trains of tanker trucks hauling liquid manure down township and county roads, often exceeding posted weight restrictions, and rolling out miles of tubing to pump and deliver that manure to fields far and wide. The damage to our roads is easy to see and document and has very real costs to every resident of the township and county. The experiences of folks in Iowa and nearby areas like Emerald in St. Croix County show that the environmental effects are real and can be damaging to health.

Our town plan commission drafted the ordinance and is made up of five residents, four of whom actively farm and three of whom raise livestock as a primary component of their operations. I personally could not imagine my farm without cattle and am deeply committed to using ruminants to improve ecological outcomes. None of us are against animal agriculture, even on a large scale. What we are against is an unregulated factory disguised as a farm. For context, Ridge Breeze is currently building a single barn that will cover 11 acres. That barn isn’t required to have stormwater holding ponds that structures 10% the size are required to have in other industries. That facility isn’t required to have a comprehensive mortality management plan. Ridge Breeze is an unregulated Walmart distribution center, not a farm. A facility of this scale with little oversight is, based on real world evidence, likely dangerous to those living anywhere near their operations. But industry reps have made it clear how they intend to deal with local efforts to mitigate these risks.

Their plan: threaten, intimidate, and lobby state lawmakers to remove any and all regulations. They do not feel compelled to talk with their neighbors when they can just call in favors from friends in high places. Between threats of lawsuits and attempts to strip regulations away on a state level, what can we do as farmers and residents who care?

For starters, get up to speed on the issue. GrassRoots Organizing Western Wisconsin has done a good deal of work on this issue and is a great resource for understanding how we can work collectively and effectively. Wisconsin Farmers Union is also a leader in working to protect local governance and the continued regulation of these operations, and the efforts of Midwest Environmental Advocates were instrumental in recent court victories that have upheld the need for CAFO regulations. Becoming a member and supporting one or all of these organizations is a great way to help build collective power and offset concentrated industry influence. And lastly, attend local town and county board meetings. Ask questions, share resources and start a conversation. Let your friends, neighbors and representatives at every level of government know that rural communities do not have to become the victims of unregulated industry like many urban communities have.

Never forget, as our friends at Farmers Union say, we are Stronger Together.

Tom Manley serves on the Gilman Town Board and is a Gilman township resident and farmer.