You Kids Get Out of Here NE IA Farmer June 2010
You Kids get out of here!
The nannies in Washington have managed to find another way to attempt to kill the family farm. It’s called the CARE act, introduced by and sponsored by 94 members of the house, none from the Midwest. The bill proposes to amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA) to repeal exemptions from child labor prohibitions for agricultural employment.
The bill proposed to prevent anyone under 18 employed in agriculture unless employed by a parent or a person standing in place of a parent on a farm owned or operated by such parent or person. So that means parents can still work their own kids, but can’t go get the neighbors or your brother’s kids
That means no extra help to pick up rock, bale hay, pull in wagons, feed cows, paint the barn, etc etc. What exactly is left to do for employment for kids? Solving mysteries with Scooby Doo and gang will probably be the next regulated activity. The average family size is pretty small, then when you add in competing for kid’s time with sports and other extra circular activities, finding kids to help do farm work is already hard enough.
I think the goal of the bill was to stop immigrant child labor. Noble, worthy or otherwise, the impact on the Midwest way of life is direct. Sure, not as many folks need help baling hay anymore, and walking beans has largely given way to spraying, but the wholesale removal of kids from agricultural labor is offensive to the very foundation of our country.
The bill is currently not going anywhere in the House of Representatives, I hope it stays that way. The thing that really fires me up about the whole idea is how proponents of the bill are trying to paint working on a farm as Child Slavery and have said that the family farm is a myth given way to corporate ownership of farms. Maybe they should have checked with kids in the local area who put up hay, pick up rock and load turkeys for local farmers. Maybe the those folks would prefer they all drove around all day or played video games.
And Take the BEEF with you!!
EPA region responsible for Iowa has taken a series of civil enforcement actions against three beef feedlot operations in Iowa for violations of the Clean Water Act.
One involves a civil penalty against a cattle feeder for failure to comply with its National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit. A feeder in Hastings, Iowa, has agreed to pay a $31,573 civil penalty for its unauthorized discharges of pollutants to Indian Creek in Mills County, Iowa.
The remaining two enforcement actions involve administrative compliance orders issued to medium-sized operations, which are feedlots that confine between 300 and 999 cattle.
A Rock Valley, Iowa feeder must apply for an NPDES permit and complete wastewater controls at its facilities by October 31, 2011, to end discharges into an unnamed tributary of the Rock River in Sioux County, Iowa.
A feed lot in Ireton, Iowa, must apply for an NPDES permit and complete wastewater controls at its facilities by October 31, 2011, to end discharges into Six Mile Creek in Sioux County, Iowa.
Further in Idaho the EPA has issued to a feeding company an order to halt discharges from its nearly 700-acre feedlot complex near Grand View, Idaho. The company feeds between 30,000 and 65,000 cattle year round at this feedlot facility near the Snake River in southeastern Idaho. Water samples pulled from the facility’s discharge were shown to contain colonies of fecal bacteria
The order directs the lot to immediately cease all discharge. The Order stems from the company’s use of a constant flow stock watering system, which wouldn’t be a problem in feedlots and dairies, however it is not authorized for rangeland use. When not used for irrigation (usually from November to March), a portion of this water is diverted to pasture, irrigation ditches, or into the Ted Trueblood Wildlife Refuge, all of which ultimately flow into the Snake River.
The operation is covered under an NPDES CAFO permit, and by discharging 1500 gallons per minute from the production area, they are violating their permit.
The operation is covered under an NPDES CAFO permit, and by discharging 1500 gallons per minute from the production area, they are violating their permit.
It appears to me that feed lots over 300 and under 999 head are being directly targeted by the EPA. Operators need to carefully consider whether their operations will be considered a feedlot over 300. In some instances, even a couple of smaller lots in close proximity to each other can be combined into one feed lot for regulatory purposes.