MOUNTAIN VIEW COUNTY - The county’s municipal planning commission (MPC) will be asking the National Resource Conservation Board (NRCB) for follow-up information on a proposed large-scale expansion of an existing multi-species confined feeding operation (CFO) in the Midway area southeast of Carstairs.
The CFO is located on the southwest side of the intersection of Township Road (Twp. Rd.) 292 and Range Road (Rge. Rd.) 275, at NE and SE 7-29-27-4.
The owner of the CFO and applicant is the Neudorf Hutterian Brethren Colony.
The proposed expansion includes increasing the number of livestock from 85 to 120 milking cows, from 400 to 600 sows farrow to finish, from 2,000 to 3,000 chicken broilers, from 300 to 500 turkeys, and from 900 to 1,100 ducks.
A CFO is an enclosed or fenced space where livestock are confined for feeding.
The provincial Agricultural Operation Practices Act (AOPA) sets out the technical requirements that must be met by confined feeding operations, and the NRCB is responsible for delivering AOPA and the permitting of confined feeding operations.
As the municipality where the applicant proposes to expand, Mountain View County is an affected party and entitled to provide the NRCB with comments and submissions relative to the application.
During a recent commission meeting, councillor and commission member Peggy Johnson commented on the proposed expansion.
“The application proposes to increase animal numbers somewhat significantly in existing buildings without expanding the buildings,” she said. “So, my first question would be whether or not the increase in livestock numbers in the existing building and the increase in animal density, is the criteria for good animal welfare still being met?”
She also asked, “If there is sufficient water available in the aquifer without affecting the water availability to neighbours?”
MPC chair Gerald Ingeveld said, “When I went to college I was told that if you have milk cows you shouldn’t have hogs or chickens because of the transfer of disease. So my question to this is, does the NRCB refer to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) and Canadian Livestock Standards when they are looking at these applications and what would be the comments from that? I was very surprised to see the diversity of animals in this operation.”
Coun. Johnson put forward a motion that the commission request the following information from the NRCB:
• Confirmation that criteria for animal welfare are met with the increase in livestock numbers within existing buildings.
• Confirmation that sufficient water is available in the aquifer for the increase in livestock numbers that would not impact surrounding landowners.
• Confirmation that the diversity of livestock types at the facility are acceptable to the CFIA and Canadian Livestock Standards.
The county’s municipal development plan deals with confined feeding operations, including that the “applications for new or expanding confined feeding operations shall meet all provincial standards and after provincial approval is obtained for new or expanding confined feeding operations, the construction shall be subject to Mountain View County road use agreement policy.”
Once received, the NRCB’s responses to the commission’s questions will come back before the commission for further discussion and/or comment.
