Sat, Nov 21 2009
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Published October 30, 2009 12:09 am - Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster is appealing a judge’s ruling that blocked a proposed hog farm from locating near the historic village of Arrow Rock in central Missouri. The August 2008 ruling by Cole County Circuit Judge Patricia Joyce created a protective two-mile buffer around state parks and historic sites. Hog-farm ruling appealed by attorney general By Wally Kennedy
wkennedy@joplinglobe.com Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster is appealing a judge’s ruling that blocked a proposed hog farm from locating near the historic village of Arrow Rock in central Missouri. The August 2008 ruling by Cole County Circuit Judge Patricia Joyce created a protective two-mile buffer around state parks and historic sites. The construction and/or expansion of concentrated animal feeding operations, known as CAFOs, within the buffer were prohibited. Also prohibited within the buffer was the spreading of animal wastes from CAFOs. Koster, in a statement released Thursday, said he filed the appeal because the manner in which the buffer was created is not consistent with established state laws. Said Koster: “I want to be emphatic about this: I am in favor of the concept of expanded buffer zones around state parks, recreational waterways, historic sites and other sites of cultural significance. “However, the manner in which these buffers are created is of critical importance to the state. This case raises the question of whether buffer zones are created by the General Assembly, the Department of Natural Resources, or the judiciary. It is imperative we know the answer to this question.” DNR’s position Travis Ford, a spokesman for Mark Templeton, director of the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, said in a telephone interview Thursday that the department does not support the appeal and is not a party to the appeal. “Our position is that this is completely the attorney general’s position,” Ford said. “He has the legal authority to make this decision and file this action. We are not involved.” Templeton was appointed to his post by Gov. Jay Nixon, who as attorney general refused to represent the DNR when it was sued over the Arrow Rock hog CAFO. The DNR hired a special attorney to defend the decision to grant a permit to the hog CAFO, which was never built. The DNR appealed Joyce’s ruling when Doyle Childers was the director of the department. Childers was appointed by former Gov. Matt Blunt. In the appellate brief, Koster substituted Templeton for Childers as a party. The brief says their legal interests are the same in that the department is in the charge of the director. The attorney general’s lawyers met more than a month ago with officials in Nixon’s administration and the DNR. Koster has said the administration preferred that he drop the appeal of Joyce’s decision. Scott Holste, a spokesman for Nixon’s office, has said that Nixon was not supportive of the appeal, but that the governor assured Koster that it was his decision to make and that Nixon would not criticize him if he decided to take on the appeal. Koster’s decision to appeal the ruling was viewed Thursday as a step backward for Missouri’s state parks and historic sites by the Friends of Arrow Rock, the Roaring River Parks Alliance, the Sierra Club and the Missouri Parks Association. 
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