Two seeking ag office debate livestock rules
IOWA - Both candidates for Iowa agriculture secretary said Friday the state needs to do something about foul odors and other pollution from livestock confinements, but they differed on what should be done.Democrat Denise O'Brien and Republican Bill Northey squared off at the taping of Iowa Public Television's "Iowa Press," which airs Sunday at 11:30 a.m.
The fight for a position that usually draws minimal attention even in farm-rich Iowa has become unusually hot this year, drawing national press, an unusual Farm Bureau fundraising campaign, and grass-roots campaigning centered on support of county control over the location of new livestock operations.
Northey has consistently said the state should keep control over the siting and regulation of livestock farms. However, on Friday he said the state should consider requiring a greater distance between the livestock operations and tourist attractions.
Source: Des Moines Register