Remember the Maryland farm that was being harassed by the WaterKeeper Alliance? The court has finally scheduled closing arguments in the case for November 30th. The judge will rule on the matter sometime in December (there was no jury in this case).
This has certainly been a long, drawn out affair for the family farm, and our thoughts and prayers go with them. If you want to support them financially or otherwise, please visit Save Farm Families.
A local newspaper believes some of the following issues will be decided in this case:
- Does a poultry company (in this case Perdue Farms Inc.) share financial responsibility for nutrient management practices of a contract grower or for any pollution caused by those growers?
- How tightly must pollution sources be controlled by a grower to avoid liability?
- Is litigation a viable tool for environmental groups to employ in their pursuit of an agenda?
- Can pollution in a stream be directly traced to a particular farm in such a precise way?
I guess we have to wait until December to decide….
