I must take exception to John Postema’s blaming of the Growth Management Act for farming problems (“GMA: It’s no friend to this local farmer,” Wednesday). The people determining compliance with the GMA are not just from Seattle. The GMA is enforced on the state level by people interpreting law, period. And good law it is. Furthermore, economics in today’s world, more than the GMA, influence the success of farming.
We need to understand that farmers are not necessarily great shepherds of our farmland or environment. They do not, as a rule, respect buffers that are critical to the environment, especially when most farms are in floodplains and wetlands. They use literally tons of fertilizers and pesticides and burn large amounts of hydrocarbons in inefficient machinery when farming on a large scale. These are not good for the land, air or water, though they may increase the farmer’s bottom line.
It’s time for everyone to move into the new millennium. Age-old practices should be updated to meet new scientific knowledge. Just because our County Council Republicans, seeking support and donations, try to bypass good environment practices, doesn’t make it good for our county.
I am a property owner who has to deal with new regulations also. It makes it much harder for me to profit off my rural land in Snohomish. Farmers should not be given a free ride while other property owners carry the burden. When local government tries to circumvent the GMA, not for a better environment but for political advantage, the state needs to intervene to make sure our next generation has a great county, not one despoiled by individuals who can’t comply.
Steve Morse
Snohomish
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