Arkansas Blog

What? Individual farmers aren't being sued. Federal courts in other states have already found that the poultry companies and not the individual growers are responsible the manure produced by the chickens. All Beebe's moves on this issue seem to disregard the law and actual issues at hand and are instead aimed at garnering support in NWA for his governorship bid - not going to matter against Hutchinson.

â?oWe are filing on behalf of the State of Arkansas and the individual farmers who have no voice in this litigious attack on their farms,â?� Beebe said. â?oThe poultry companies have their own attorneys and can pursue whatever legal action they wish.

What part of this did you not understand? Beebe is trying to protect the individual farmer. Anybody knows that it does not matter what the Federal Courts have said in the past, it does not stop Oklahoma from filing lawsuits and coming after the individual farmers. Oklahoma probably knows at the end they may well lose, due to precedent, but by coming after the farmer with a big stick and never ending personal attorney costs, they may get some traction.
Oklahoma thinks that if the farmers are faced with personal lawsuits, the farmerâ?Ts will collectively scream to their masters. Oklahoma is playing hardball against the framers, who are frankly caught in the middle and Beebe is trying to head them off at the pass and force them to go through the proper channelsâ?¦i.e. the poultry companies and the 1970 agreement. Iâ?Tm pretty sure the poultry companies do not want Big Bad Oklahoma threatening and squeezing their suppliers.
You have to wonder why these people in AR and OK canâ?Tt sit down at a table, lock the doors and not come out until an agreement which not only protects the watershed but the livelihoods of 1000â?Ts in both states. Political poker , egoâ?Ts and money donâ?Tt mix. This is a prime example.

Actually, anonymous coward, there are individual farmers being sued by the state of Oklahoma. Also, the state of Oklahoma trespassed on individual farmers' land and put up monitors to measure the phosphorus levels. The state of OK had no legal right to do so. I think Beebe is just trying to do what's right by the poultry producers . He wants to represent the producers so they have a fair shake in court, since it seems OK is deadset on suing the farmers.

Why does Beebe hate clean water?

If you are not for clean water you are with the polluters.

If we are mucking up the water and then it flows into Oklahoma, my question is why are we mucking up the water?

I don't see how making Tyson clean up their act could hurt us. Tyson had to close plants down yesterday so the employees could go to the illegal imigrant rallies. That indicates that most of the jobs at Tyson's are not citizens so why should we allow our water to be polluted so that workers can send their money home to Mexico.

Now before I get slammed on the Blog, I am for immigrantion reform, I believe we benefit greatly from the immigrants we have come here to work and I believe we should let people that wish to come here to work become permanent.

My whole reason for this post is that it appears Beebe is in the pockets of the chicken poop spreaders. If the water is polluted when it leaves the state Beebe needs to be using his office to file charges against the polluters.

Hey Ag supporter,

How is a made up name less of a coward than anonamous?

The Attorney General of Arkansas needes to go after the problem- polluted streams- and not just where they flow into another state. Beebe needs to protect ME. A non chicken poop spreading land owner!

If Beebe is the Public Defender he can fight in the accused wrong-doer's corner but he is the AG and needs to be attacking polluters.

Why are we not sueing the polluters of the water that stays in the state longer instead of fighting for polluters who's sins are flowing across state lines.

Why is it that nobody talks about landowner rights when runoff is poisoning the land, only when the ability to poison other's land is infringed?

Beebe needs a briefing on the difference between chicken salad and chicken sh*t. April 22 was Earth Day and if Beebe and his polluter buddies had their way our rivers and streams would be Chicken Sh*t Central. Ah well, this is proof positive that Morril Harriman and the Poultry Federation are getting a handsome return on all the bribes ("campaign contributions") they've sent Beebe's way.

It is interesting to note that, a couple of months ago, a local elected trial court judge let a local jury decide the issue of whether a poultry company is liable for pollution caused by one of its growers. The case dealt with odor from a large poultry operation located in Independence County. The jury held the company liable for the grower's pollution. Now, if the companies are liable under the law for their grower's pollution, then who is the AG standing up for? Folks familar with the arrangement have known for years that big poultry has been treating its growers about as badly as it treats the environment. The companies claim to own the chickens from the egg to the broiler, supply the feed, vitamins, medicines etc. but disclaim ownership of the chicken poop. This effort by big poulty to shield itself from the liability for pollution has not proven successful. The case is about the impact of big poultry on the environment. The effort to interject the farmer into it is simply a smokescreen. If the AG is really concerned about the welfare of the growers, then you would think he would be on their side when the companies cancel contracts for no good reason leaving them deep in debt, provide them diseased birds or cheat at the scales. All of these have been proven in court and yet the AG wasn't there sticking up for the grower. Let's get real.

Rod Bryan for Governor? Is it too late to sign his petition?

Shows the Beeb is woefully out of touch - dates back to the politics of Dlae Bumpers when it was OK to get your nephew a plush job as VP of Tyson's for spending jail time corrupting the Clinton Ag folks.
Hpoefully folks are wiser now - see the degradation of Beaver Lake and OK waters as one and the same. Sad Jim Lendall is not more vocal on this stuff - he is the Green candidate is he not?

Why should I bear the societal cost of thousands of chicken farmers polluting the streams? If I were in Olkahoma, I'd be pissed and I'd be suing. Why do we have the right to screw everyone over downstream?

If anyone has the names or locations of individual farmers being sued by the state of Oklahoma, please provide them. If you can explain why individual farmers can't get their own attorneys to defend their farming practices, please do so.

I am aware that the state of Oklahoma has collected water from public waterways. If you can tell me what is wrong with taking water out of a stream to test, while at the same time defending the dumping of tons of noxious waste into the stream, please explain it. If you can also explain the farmers defying court orders for water and soil samples I would be appreciative.

Let me get this right--Beebe is using our tax dollars to defend individuals who are polluting our streams? Is there some public interest in continuing pollution that compells the AG to provide taxpayer provided free legal service to polluters? I thought the powers of the office were to be used in the public interest, not for the private interests.

Ralph, too many issues, too little time. I've ranted in several venues about this and other ways the AG is selling our environment down the river. Maybe after I am officially on the ballot, the comments will be reported.

What ever happened to the environmentalists in the Democratic party? Big businesses in Arkansas have wasted their money paying for in-house attorneys. Tthe people of Arkansas have been paying a corporate attorney for them. All of the defendants in the Oklahoma are corporations, none of them are family farmers.

Catfish: " I thought the powers of the office were to be used in the public interest, not for the private interests."

I noticed that Arkansas is conspicuously absent in the list of AGs filing suit over the relaxed air quality standards. Do you see a trend? Does that answer your rhetorical question?

You guys are the 70727 best, thanks so much for the help.