Manure spill in the area
According to the Iowa DNR, the Iowa pork industry's poster boy of poor management, Austin "Jack" DeCoster, made another boo-boo again. One of his facilities, located about 8 miles from here, had a manure spill of about 10,000 gallons, which ran through a tile line and into a tributary of the Chariton River. This same Chariton River is where we get our water from.
I am no fan of Jack DeCoster. In the mid ninties, while I was in college, I worked part time for an organization called PrairieFire, a non-profit advocacy organization in Des Moines. My job as an "intern" was to research ol' Jack and his ways. Jack came out to Iowa in the late eighties from Maine where he had a major egg laying operation, as well as a lengthly list of environmental and labor infractions. He didn't learn anything and had shoddy operations that leaked manure and managers that abused immigrants. When we learned he planning to build in The South of Iowa, we held a meeting nearby in Derby. I spoke on him, informing the audience of the issues behind DeCoster, both in Maine and in Iowa. Unfortunately, he went ahead and built three buildings in the area, but no more. We didn't get turned into Wall Lake township, Wright County Iowa.
I call him the poster boy of poor hog management, as he is the first operator to be included in the "three strikes and you're out" policy that Attorney General Tom Miller put in place to keep habitual violators of DNR code from continuing in their ways. The Iowa Pork Producers have not done enough to distance themselves from fellows like him, and therefore are linked with him by association.
Interestingly enough, I recently delivered cattle feed to a manager of the site near Weldon that had the spill. I'll have something to talk about the next time I deliver...
I am no fan of Jack DeCoster. In the mid ninties, while I was in college, I worked part time for an organization called PrairieFire, a non-profit advocacy organization in Des Moines. My job as an "intern" was to research ol' Jack and his ways. Jack came out to Iowa in the late eighties from Maine where he had a major egg laying operation, as well as a lengthly list of environmental and labor infractions. He didn't learn anything and had shoddy operations that leaked manure and managers that abused immigrants. When we learned he planning to build in The South of Iowa, we held a meeting nearby in Derby. I spoke on him, informing the audience of the issues behind DeCoster, both in Maine and in Iowa. Unfortunately, he went ahead and built three buildings in the area, but no more. We didn't get turned into Wall Lake township, Wright County Iowa.
I call him the poster boy of poor hog management, as he is the first operator to be included in the "three strikes and you're out" policy that Attorney General Tom Miller put in place to keep habitual violators of DNR code from continuing in their ways. The Iowa Pork Producers have not done enough to distance themselves from fellows like him, and therefore are linked with him by association.
Interestingly enough, I recently delivered cattle feed to a manager of the site near Weldon that had the spill. I'll have something to talk about the next time I deliver...
posted by bgunzy at 4/07/2007 07:21:00 PM
3 Comments:
Can Mr. DeCoster be asked to pick up all the poop he allowed to be deposited in Chariton Creek ?
Yes !
DeCoster should clean the Chariton Creek with a Q tip, based on his track record. Has Tom Miller filed any charges ?
He'd just hire few dozen illegal aliens from Mexico and El Salvador to do it for him wile turning the surrounding small towns and communities into crime ridden third world slums.
DeCoster and his Illegal importing, community destroying, agrigiant, rural exploiting ilk deserve the rope.
Post a Comment
<< Home