MONTGOMERY, Ala. – For farmers, this stinks: Belching and gaseous cows and hogs could start costing them money if a federal proposal to charge fees for air-polluting animals becomes law.
Farmers so far are turning their noses up at the notion, which is one of several put forward by the Environmental Protection Agency after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2007 that greenhouse gases emitted by belching and flatulence amounts to air pollution.
"This is one of the most ridiculous things the federal government has tried to do," said Alabama Agriculture Commissioner Ron Sparks, an outspoken opponent of the proposal.
It would require farms or ranches with more than 25 dairy cows, 50 beef cattle or 200 hogs to pay an annual fee of about $175 for each dairy cow, $87.50 per head of beef cattle and $20 for each hog.
The executive vice president of the Wyoming Farm Bureau Federation, Ken Hamilton, estimated the fee would cost owners of a modest-sized cattle ranch $30,000 to $40,000 a year. He said he has talked to a number of livestock owners about the proposals, and "all have said if the fees were carried out, it would bankrupt them."
Sparks said Wednesday he's worried the fee could be extended to chickens and other farm animals and cause more meat to be imported.
"We'll let other countries put food on our tables like they are putting gas in our cars. Other countries don't have the health standards we have," Sparks said. [...]
With continuing rising food prices, do we really need to be adding food taxes and driving farmers out of business? The government won't allow us to drill our own oil, now they want to limit our food production. Are we supposed to depend on foreigners for everything? Whatever happened to American self-sufficiency?
President-elect Obama wants to spend billions to rebuild our nations roads and bridges. I can support him in that, because it needs to be done, and it's a traditional function of government. But should regulating cow farts become a function of government?
It's essentially a meat tax, and while vegetarians may be pleased by it, I think few others will. Big government will always think of endless new ways to raise new taxes and control people by limiting the things they depend on for life and freedom. But only if we let them. We should draw a line here.
Related Links:
Cow Farts Collected For Global Warming Study
1 comment:
I agree with the tax...HOWEVER...I think they should charge the cow directly, not the farmer. If the cow can't pay, throw it in jail. Failure to pay after 30 days should carry the death sentence (best done on a spit over a nice wood fire). Presto, no cow farts and world hunger is solved!
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