Permits in works for dairy project

“We do still want to proceed this spring or summer,” said Cecilia Conway of Vreba-Hoff Dairy Development. The project is an unusually complicated and controversial one, she said, and is getting “a lot of attention and scrutiny from the state.”

Local residents have organized in opposition to the proposed dairy. Township and county government officials have also voiced opposition to the dairy since plans were announced more than a year ago.

Michigan Department of Environmental Quality spokesman Robert McCann said the agency will keep the public updated when permits for the dairy reach the public hearing stage. A surface water permit application has been submitted but is not yet complete, he said. A permit covering groundwater will also be required, he said.

“Certainly as this process moves forward we’ll let folks know where things stand because we know there is obviously a strong interest in this,” McCann said.

Conway said the opposition has affected planning for the dairy’s manure management. Plans submitted to the state identify nearly 9,000 acres of farm land on which manure will be applied. But most of those acres are miles away from the dairy site.

Some of the farm land included in the manure management plan is in Monroe County. Other fields are in the Sand Creek area and as far away as Britton.

Conway said she believes farm owners closer to the dairy are interested in taking advantage of the dairy’s manure as a fertilizer but have not signed agreements because of harassment by individuals who want to stop the development. She said it is a tactic used by opponents of dairy projects elsewhere.

“That definitely impacts participation up front,” Conway said. She said she expects local farmers will eventually work with the dairy because of the benefits and economics of a nearby source of organic fertilizer.