Amish Farming Draws Rare Government Scrutiny (EPA again?)

NYT ^ | 06/08/2010 | SINDYA N. BHANOO

[cbkaty]

LANCASTER, Pa. — With simplicity as their credo, Amish farmers consume so little that some might consider them model environmental citizens.

Manure that accumulates on Amish farms easily washes into nearby streams, then into the troubled Chesapeake Bay. The federal government’s work with Amish farmers is part of an initiative intended to restore the bay to good health.

“We are supposed to be stewards of the land,” said Matthew Stoltzfus, a 34-year-old dairy farmer and father of seven whose family, like many other Amish, shuns cars in favor of horse and buggy and lives without electricity. “It is our Christian duty.”

But farmers like Mr. Stoltzfus are facing growing scrutiny for agricultural practices that the federal government sees as environmentally destructive. Their cows generate heaps of manure that easily washes into streams and flows onward into the Chesapeake Bay.

[finnsheep]

A study was done on the Chesapeake that showed most pollution is due to manure from deer, geese and other wildlife and not farming. The manure mismanagement is coming from the government, not farmers.

[calex59]

Let’s see, so now the EPA is worried about cow sh**, something that occurs naturally in nature, not to mention all of the deer, moose, bear, squirrel, rabbit, elk and any other animal sh** you can think of that washes daily into our water supply. What is wrong with the brains of liberals, is there some type of brain rot virus that affects only them?

[GraceG]

“The government hates the Amish because they are not dependent on any government service other than national defense. The way it should be. “

Regular Farmers in the heartland are next...

[Jimmy Valentine]

I don't know about that but the Canada Goose canbe a real pain on a golf course.

Ill tempered and territorial the poop like crazy.

[houeto]

After they take care of the Amish cow problem, I wonder if they are going to do something about the countless millions of wild critters (from birds to panthers) that are also pooping where it can run off into the Chesapeake.

...and the fish. Where are all the fish pooping?