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By Jimmy Westerfeld
President, McLennan County Farrm Bureau
Editor's Note. The City of Waco recently filed suit against a number of dairy farmers in the Bosque River Watershed. The following is a response from the president of the McLennan County Farm Bureau, Jimmy Westerfeld.
Lawsuits are obstacles to solutions, not answers to most problems. But the City of Waco apparently does not view the Lake Waco situation in this manner.
The McLennan County Farm Bureau board of directors, 14 tax-paying, water-drinking, Waco buying farmers and ranchers, offer these opinions on why the City of Waco should not sue the dairies in Erath County.
First, and most important, you should thank the good Lord that you have an abundant supply of water, milk and above all, food. We grew up in the country on well water and it never tasted good. Is it not true, except for the occasional "bad" taste, the lake water is perfectly safe?
No doubt there is some phosphorus ending up in the lake but there are numerous other sources that contaminate this Central Texas water source.
Second, this has been an extremely wet year. The last time we checked, the weather bureau reported 41 inches! The unusually high rainfall this spring and summer has resulted in many more river and creek water rises along the Bosque River Watershed. This, along with farm practices and city activities, has caused nutrients to enter the lake.
Third, last October 9th the South Bosque watershed, without one dairy, received 10-12 inches of rain in a few hours. Fertilizer, including golf courses, manicured business landscapes, Waco lawns and from farms, has without any doubt washed into the lake. It would be interesting for someone to run some calculations on that phosphorus source, but we can't find any mention of it in the Waco Tribune-Herald.
Assuming all homeowners apply fertilizer according to the label as farmers do for economic reasons, this is a significant source of nutrients. Should the City of Waco sue all the homeowners who contribute to this problem?
Let's step back in history for a moment. Forty years ago, not long after the "new" lake filled, the lake water also tasted bad at times, especially when the lake "turned over." There were no large dairies in Erath County. Occasionally, foul tasting water has been a persistent problem with this lake long before a large dairy located north of here.
We have been told that the City of Waco could spend the money to remove the bad taste from the water. Why has this not occurred? The City could spend the millions that it has tied up in litigation against the dairies to once and for all solve the problem, along with measures being taken by other parties and some of the very dairymen named in the lawsuits.
Is the City of Waco attempting to clean up the water or simply targeting the dairies to eventually force them out of business? We farmers in McLennan County have a stake in all this. We supply the dairies with feed. We like to think we are important to Waco and the surrounding area. We buy many things here, including, food, clothing, tractors and fertilizer. Without the dairies, there would be fewer of us. Without the dairies, our Central Texas economy would take a hit amounting to several hundred million dollars. We hate to think what would happen to the small communities near Stephenville without the dairy industry.
There is no doubt that the Erath County dairies have contributed to the phosphorous in Lake Waco, and we must address this in a positive way. This is currently being done. We can fix the Lake Waco phosphorus problem, but we won't do it in the courthouse.
America's farmers and ranchers still produce the safest, most abundant food in the world—all at an economical price. Don't put us out of business and jeopardize the safety, supply and affordability of everyone's daily servings of food.
