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| Michigan program focus adds farm crop systems |
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By KEVIN WALKER
Michigan Correspondent LANSING, Mich. — The Michigan Agriculture Environmental Assurance Program (MAEAP) is growing, thanks to a broadened focus on farmstead and cropping systems, in addition to the livestock system.
“Statewide, we have over 550 farms that are verified,” said Jan Wilford, program manager for MAEAP at the Michigan Department of Agriculture (MDA). “There are 6,000 more that are in some phase of MAEAP verification.”
MAEAP is a voluntary program started in 1999 to help farmers keep or make their operations environment-friendly. It was originally focused on livestock operations, since the public focus at the time was on the same.
Five farms have been verified recently under MAEAP. All were verified under the cropping or farmstead systems programs, or both. They include Lound and Lound, Four Star Farms, Reames Farm, N.J. Fox and Sons and DeRuiter Farms.
To become MAEAP-verified, a producer must complete three steps, which include attending an educational seminar, conducting a thorough on-farm risk assessment and developing an action plan that addresses environmental risks. The MDA conducts an on-farm inspection to verify that program requirements relating to state and federal regulations are being met. Michigan Right-to-Farm guidelines as well as the producer’s own action plan.
Larry Nobis, a producer from Clinton County, Mich., became MAEAP-verified under the livestock system in 2005. He’s currently working on becoming verified under the cropping and farmstead systems, as well. He has 800 head of dairy cattle.
“It’s been a very positive experience,” he said of MAEAP. “A lot of farmers saw this coming, with CAFOs. MAEAP was seen as proactive. I found that we had some environmental deficiencies, most of which were easily corrected. You cannot believe the amount of good the MAEAP program has done for the state of Michigan.”
Nobis said he has applied to the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) for a discharge permit, but won’t have to make many changes to his operation because he’s already improved his farm’s environmental profile under MAEAP.
The only thing he objects to is that, under the permit, his management plan will be open to the public. Basically, he’s afraid of being harassed by environmentalists. There are many in the environmentalist community who would like to see large farms in Michigan shut down.
“At one time I had a large farm, but by today’s standards, not really,” Nobis said. “Mechanization, new technology have made it possible to have a large farm. If you want to make a decent living and send your kids to college, it means you have to have larger numbers.”
Nobis’ experiences with state officials have been positive, but he makes a distinction between officials from different departments.
“Most farmers are more comfortable with MDA officials than DEQ officials. We feel as though MDA officials are supportive, so we can farm in a responsible manner,” he said.
Nobis is also opposed to the intense focus on large farms as an environmental threat. He stated he’s seen small farms do more environmental damage than some large farms.
“I’m not anti-large, I’m not anti-small. Both of them have to be managed well,” he said.
Wilford of the MDA echoed Nobis’ comments, stating that farms of all sizes have rules and practices under MAEAP which are designed to help producers comply with government regulations and prevent pollution.
This farm news was published in the April 2, 2008 issue of the Farm World, serving Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan and Tennessee. |
| 4/2/2008 |
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