IDEM: Still Enforcing the Law
Maybe an Indiana dairyman took IDEM Commissioner Tom Easterly a little too seriously when the official said they would not be enforcing CAFO permits:
Huntington Dairy Farmer Faces Felonies (Story in the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette).
Of course, the farmer in question is IDEM’s favorite whipping boy: Johannes De Groot:
Johannes De Groot is charged with two Class D felonies for building confined feeding structures on his property without obtaining required approval from the Indiana Department of Environmental Management. De Groot owns De Groot Dairy, a 1,400-cow operation at 8631 W. County Road 200 S., near Andrews. Each count is punishable by up to five years in prison and monetary fines.According to documents filed in Huntington Superior Court, De Groot built a dry cow barn of 120 feet by 60 feet with a cement floor.
A dry cow barn houses cows that are not producing milk. He also constructed a silage pad, used for feeding livestock, of about 150 feet by 80 feet with 3-foot cement walls.
The structures were noticed by an IDEM staff member who was doing an inspection of the farm Sept. 13.
Five years? last I heard D felonies still carried maximum penalties of 3 years. Anyway, De Groot got into a tangle with IDEM a few years back over a manure spill. That was resolved by an agreement that had the farmer paying $45k and not admitting any wrongdoing. De Groot’s attorney says the farmer had applied for permits for the new structures, and they have never been used. He has no idea where IDEM is getting off filing criminal charges.
Maybe IDEM felt like they needed to get rough with someone after appearing to have given up on enforcing CAFO regulations earlier this year.
