County hears testimony for another dairy

The Ketterling dairy was the first approved in Elmore County, but tthe debate is heating up as seven more dairies are in various stages of seeking approval from the county.

A large crowd was on hand as Elmore County Planning and Zoning Commission accepted testimony for the latest proposal for a confined animal feeding operation and dairy last week.

The Rhead family's proposal is on Beet Dump Road and highway 51, five miles outside the area of city impact and at least three miles from any subdivision. The site is 3 ½ miles from Mountain Home Air Force Base and is zoned Ag A.

Of the 640 acres, three 160-acre parcels will be dedicated to growing crops. The dairy will be located on 120 acres of the last parcel, allowing room for eventual growth.

The dry-scrape operation will feature open stalls and covered sheds. Lights will be directed downward.

The dairy is expected to have one or two milk trucks per day as well as two commodity trucks per day. During harvest there could be as many as 30 trucks per day traveling to the site. There also will be a number of vehicles belonging to employees adding to the vehicle trips per day. The main ingress/egress road for the dairy will be off Beet Dump Road.

The siting team, with representatives from the Department of Agriculture, Department of Water Resources and Department of Environmental Quality, determined the dairy proposal to be of moderate risk, noting 3,000 additional acres are needed to handle the nutrients for the number of cows planned for the operation (3,000 milkers plus 3,000 dry cows). The applicant is working on agreements with growers to take the nutrients. The manure would replace the commercial fertilizers.

Speaking on behalf of the Elmore County Coalition against CAFOs and Dairies, Catherine Brown noted the P&Z Commission faced a hard and often thankless job. "If we allow any more of these mega-dairies to move in, Elmore County will lose its ability to attract other forms of industries."

E.C.C.C.D. points out the Department of Agriculture has testified that for every cow, it takes one irrigated acre of land to apply one year's worth of manure for that cow, otherwise it will over saturate the soil and leech into the aquifer. "The siting team for Mr. Rhead has verified that 'the local area is reaching its maximum threshold to adequately handle the waste produced without excessive hauling.' This is not even taking into consideration four more conditional use permits that have been granted by this commission."

Citing Idaho Code as well as the county's comprehensive plan, Brown noted several areas of the dairy's possible conflict, including property rights, water quality and air quality.

"However if you are considering approval of this CUP," she said, "consider these conditions that will give us some measure of protection for our environment. This will be an industrial operation because of its size. Therefore it should be required to file for a rezone as industrial." She presented a dozen conditions E.C.C.C.D. would ask be added to the conditional use permit.

Nearly a dozen citizens offered testimony to be considered by the P&Z commission. Those opposing the new dairy expressed concerns about pollution, increased traffic, smells, flies, mosquitoes, pest control and health concerns. Concerns also centered on water quality and quantity as well as property values.

After more than 2 ½ hours of testimony, with the hour growing late, Shane Watson, consultant/planner for the Rhead family, said he would like the opportunity to respond (rebut) in writing. The commission will accept written response until Feb. 11, and requested the issue be put on the agenda March 2 for a decision.