Was wondering if they have information on applications for employment. My agricultural background, I believe would be benificial to the Tulsa thank you for your time.
Sincerely Justin

fedprop- I believe those basins are the manure storage basins and not storm runoff detention ponds

Just curious if the basins that they built along the highway are for storm water runoff?

And if they are, if they designed them to infiltrate the runoff water into the ground. Because that type of design doesn't work very well with silt loam soils on the rock prairie.

Just enjoying the view as the buildings continue to go up as I pass by about once a week.

Dwight K Schrute....Where ya hidin?
You don't have to be shy or nuttin.....

Hay isn't all alfalfa and some hay has no alfalfa.
How much hay are these cows going to be fed?

Truth1 apparently doesn't know the difference between grass and hay (alfalfa).

After reading all these comments, I'm contemplating becoming a vegetarian ;)

orealy: just because that is the practice in asia and some other third world countries doesn't mean that it is practiced in the US. I have yet to be on a farm that the farmers feed their cattle chicken feces! If cattle are not grazing then they are being fed things such as hay, corn silage ect ect. Do yourself a favor and go to a large farm and talk to the farmer, you just might learn something!

Rocky says cows can't eat grass in the winter.
Really???.....That shows what you know....You must have never seen baled hay.

Mathchat-
Cowpies get dried in the sun before they get used to burn- that would mean PASTURED COWS now wouldn't it?
The WHOLE problem with any of the pollution associated with mega dairies is when you combine water with the manure. It becomes a concentrate.Pathogens and bacteria and nitrates multiply. When it is liquid accidents occur.
You may think the technology has improved with digesters, but the cost to man them and maintain them has not improved. Newer ain't always better.It ain't cost effective.

Clearly if cattle aren't being grazed, it's because they're being fed . . . something else.

a friend wrote to me about a methane digester being used by a goat herder in Costa Rica. It required the manure of 2-3 goats... (yeah. all the technology...)
We pay for 'em- because the owner is going to apply for a grant for it. The owner will get the warmth. The owner will use the electricity (almost none or none will go back to the grid...), and the owner will use the "solids" as bedding (and sell the rest!). Meanwhile, for paying for this equipment we get about a 50% reduction in some gases. (Ammonia is actually intensified.)
And the manure ponds leak MORE! not less!
Tell me what part of this sounds like a good deal? (except if you are the mega-dairy owner- its a great deal for him....)

Say it again. Less jobs in the community. Less money turning over in the community. More odor in the community. Danger to the water supply and rivers in the community.

no wonder so many people are excited about this! Makes me want to read the APHA (American Public Health Association) policy statement seeking moratorium all over again.

Luddites stop big dairy farms in their home districts. Apparently it takes legislators with some cajones to stop these factory farms outrages. Unfortunately, we don't have them in Rock county

http://host.madison.com/ct/news/local/go...

Many are demanding that the use of filthy feed be outlawed.
http://www.foodanimalconcerns.org/filthy...

FEEDING POULTRY WASTE TO CATTLE
***

"Feeding poultry waste (litter and manure) to ruminants is well documented in the literature and is now practiced in many countries."

***

"The usual upper limit for the incorporation of poultry waste into ruminant diets is 40%, but when the level of undigestables (ash, structural carbohydrates) is low and low-cost energy-rich feeds are available (root crops, sugar, molasses, grain, fruit waste, etc.) then the litter level in the ration can be higher. A typical example of this potential is shown in experiments (Müller and Drevjany, 1968) with six groups of 15 Holstein steers of an average initial weight of 283 kg."

***

"Long-term field experiments with wintering beef cows on high levels of broiler litter by Virginia scientists (Webb et al., 1977) have been in course since 1972. In the first three years the feeding ration comprised 75%, and from the fourth year onwards, 80% broiler litter, the balance consisting of ground ear maize. There was almost no grazing.

***

Don't say it doesn't happen.

Thinking about pork chops for dinner?

***

"The nutritive value of poultry waste for pigs . . . Lower levels (4–7%) of fresh poultry waste without bedding are not only tolerated well in pig rations but apparently stimulate growth and appetite. Fresh manure consumed immediately after excretion apparently has a higher level of protein-bound protein, and very low level of ammoniacal protein, which rapidly increases within hours. This would explain the better utilization of fresh manure than decomposed manure."
***

"An integrated approach hen/pig/fish has been adopted by some farmers in Southeast Asia. They construct cages for laying hens 1.5 m above the pig pen, thus saving the cost of a poultry house. Excreta from laying hens fall down into the pen, where it is consumed by pigs virtually within seconds. One pig is usually “serviced” by 3–7 birds, and the pigs receive 6.3%–14.6% of layer manure (DM) in their ration."

http://www.fao.org/docrep/004/x6518e/X65...

While everyone complains about things that they have no idea what they are complaining about become educated on why dairy cows are housed and fed the way they are. Some of us spend lots of money going to school to be able to take care of these animals. If you are not educated with a degree in animal science then I suggest you have the information correct before you start complaining about how they are fed or housed.

http://thedairylandinitiative.vetmed.wis...

Anyone who thinks small dairy milk is all pasture fed is wrong. Even small farmers feed there cows in a cement feedlot, grain and silage. There are a few that pasture their cows the 5 months of the year it is available but not many.

No, the reason digesters haven't been done in the past is because the technology wasn't there. While it is true that the cost cannot be justified for small dairy farms, larger farms can certainly take advantage of the process. The methane gas is turned into electricity which is then sold back to the power company. Modern digesters do a much better job than anything built even 10 years ago. However this doesn't mean that you can't create your own digester by burning your own waste like they did back in the pioneer days when they collected dried up cow-pies and burned them to stay warm in the winter in their little sod huts. I doubt that anyone could last even one day without electricity around here anymore...

Rocky- What kind of jerk steps on the fingers of the dairy guys just hanging on to keep their land, family farm and heritage?
45 small dairies would (low) average 3 owner/workers per dairy. Simple math....3x45=135 workers. Duz Tuls have the 135 jobs to offer the poor guys who lose? And if he duz- that hourly wage WILL BE LESS. He wouldn't have to pay them more now would he?
Thats whut corporate take over is all about.

Methane Digesters will not make the Tul’s proposal green….
Although touted as "green power", this is not. There is nothing green and sustainable when you are losing your clean water and fresh air.
Methane Digester Basics:
Manure and water is added to a sealed container where anaerobic bacteria break it down (digest it) if the temperature, pH, and time are monitored correctly. After digestion, a liquid slurry of manure must still be stored. Methane, Ammonia, Hydrogen Sulfide, Sulfur Dioxide and Carbon Monoxide are given off. Ammonia is given off at a rate that is illegal for industry in all fifty states! Methane may be burned to heat either the methane digester or the barn. Or it may be burned to produce some electricity. If the methane is cleaned and compressed (expensive processes) it may be sold, but the costs of doing this exceed the return from the methane (unless heavily subsidized). The other gasses are all toxic and there is odor.
Western Dairy News (September. 2006) says that, "The technology doesn't do away with odors, however, because cow housing and long term effluent storage can still be sources of gases and particulates." And there are still plenty of dangerous bacteria and viruses in that manure. Again, Western Dairy News says, "Don't believe the folks who tell you that all the bacteria are gone.... When you start with millions there are still a lot left, including some pathogens."
You don't need a lot of cows to run a digester.
If digesters were financially sustainable,not subsidized, cities would have been using them from day one with human waste. Remember 1 cow=23 folks.

@johnnyreb - You're right, factory farms don't feed cattle just chicken feces, but everything's that's in chicken litter (bedding waste) including feces, feathers, and bedding made of wood shavings or sawdust. 1-2 million pounds per year. Canada banned it in '98. In the U.S., industry lobbyists continue to control both parties and regulatory agencies. www.journalofdairyscience.org/article/PI....
There's even research on the "Flavor of Beef Fed on Poultry Waste"!

The "displaced" 45 dairy farms were actually all going under because of the high price of feed. (Even Lovemycountry's "grass fed" cows can't eat grass in the winter - they all eat grains!) Economic reality says that the small family dairy is not a feasible entity any more. Do I despise that reality - absolutely! But it is reality, nonetheless. Large farms employ dozens of people - often at better wages than local retail outlets. I'd bet that this new farm will provide income for at least 45 families. So these farms offer opportunities for those who love to work with agriculture to be able to do so without going bankrupt!

I'm curious about one thing: why is it that no one has ever once considered building a manure digester for this facility? All anyone can talk about (even those persons not even from the area) is the smell and impact on groundwater. A manure digester greatly reduces the impact of both and produces clean energy to boot! One cow will produce enough manure in a year to provide electricity to one house. At 5000 cows that's 5000 homes every year. I'm sure there are state and federal grants to fund such "Green Energy" projects. If people on this post would just spend one hour a day focusing on ways the dairy can make a positive impact to the community instead of all the negativity - oh wait a minute - then they wouldn't have anything left to gripe about! BTW: here's a link to an article about the manure digester that went "online" this year in Dane County: http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/local/e... There must be a few smart people in Rock County that can figure this out - they don't all live in Dane County!

Dwight-
Maybe you are not a plant cuz there is already too much BIG DAIRY CORP. already here. Big dairy corp duz not care for those pesky small dairies just hangin on to the overflooded milk market.
And Dwight I only comment on big dairy cuz I don't have effluent run-off of the mouth about everything like you.I don't have to yak about everything now do I?
Bos used his fresh faced nephew the same way Tuls is holdin up his son......kinda like the Lion King. They trucked in 1.2 million dollars of the silage in where it rotted for 2 and a half years and created the prettiest purple pollution to ever hit the headwaters of the Apple River in Oct.2010.....We only saw that nephew that Nov. 2008.

oreally: You don't know what you are talking about. I have been past several large farms in Arizona and they smelled better than a lot of small family farms in Wisconsin! All of you people need to go visit a large farm and learn something!

hmmmm....
4,500 cow dairy displaces 45 smaller family dairies (the big ones get premiums and bargain for exclusion rights). The smaller dairies are the families in our communities, in our schools, supporting our tax base. Meanwhile, residential property values near the Tuls site go down 50-90% (Appraisal Journal, Kirkpatrick), that's got to be good news for our area. And the manure ponds leak about 1,000 gallons per acre per day. (Ham, Parker, Schulte, and others...) Wonder what the distance is between the manure pond liner and the aquifer.

But don't worry about my unbridled enthusiasm for the project. I'm sure reasonable scientists and researchers like those at the Union of Concerned Scientists, PEW Commission, Center for a Livable Future (Johns Hopkins U.), Michigan Medical Society, American Public Health Association have something to say.
They say NO.

Oreally, nice try. Even colorado feed lots with open manure storage don't smell for more than 2 or so miles on the hottest, windiest summer days.

@Rocky - your comment ended up with changing the issue to quality control. Factory farms do typically produce *clean* milk. It's just that factory farm milk is less nutritious and is missing cancer fighting qualities compared with grass fed cow milk. After all, if a cow was designed to eat grain, and not grass, it would have 3 fewer stomachs ! www.eatwild.com/articles/superhealthy.ht...

What a huge mess! 5,200 cows! With a teenager presiding over the whole shebang to boot. And please don't try to tell me that the perfume generated by this massive manure factory won't waft over Janesville on a hot July day.

Will these poor cows ever get to feel the sun on their backs or the wind in their faces or get to kick up their heels and run? How healthy can any animal be without any kind of life outside or activity or joy?

lovemycountry: You are the one that needs to do some more research! Have you ever been on a large farm? I'd be willing to bet not. I have both worked on a large farm and picked up milk on several large farms and not one of them fed their cows chicken feces! The large farms feed their cows a very regulated diet that vets oversee with the cows health in mind. The large farms are much cleaner than many of the small family farms that I have been on. You are the one full of crap if you think that farmers feed their cows chicken feces!

Lovemycountry - do you think that the grass in the pasture isn't covered with chicken, cow, crow, robin, deer, and all other sorts of feces? How about residual herbicides? If you want to drink your "organics" - go ahead. I'm happy with the quality control of the larger farms.

Brokenbow
There is a office on site. Show up & be ready to work.

If you dont like the milk from these large dairies, feel free to buy from somewhere else. I don't have an issue with what they produce and I dont want to be forced to buy my milk from an organic farm. Why do you have to try to make the rest of us live your lifestyle?

Rocky - please read the research. Grass fed milk (and beef) is nutritionally superior to products from grain fed cows. In fact, factory farms feed their cattle chicken feces - and believe or not our federal government says this is ok. To think we can change the diet of cattle, ruminants, to something entirely different without health and other issues, is greedy and arrogant. http://articles.latimes.com/2009/oct/31/...

tequilashot - are you accusing us of being planted here by big corporate agriculture? That seems to be what you are insinuating, which is funny, because each of us has a long posting history on the Gazette website because we are all LOCAL. The only stories YOU comment on are the ones regarding this farm. I think someone else is planted here and it certainly isn't one of the three you mentioned.

"Nutritionally inferior"? Hardly. Large dairies tend to produce better, more consistent milk quality than small farms. Animal health and nutrition are their primary concern - because one sick animal or tainted milk from one animal can force the loss of an entire semi-load of milk. And it isn't like they could just dump any bad milk. There are specific and expensive protocols that must be followed. No - just because the cow is not out eating grass all day does not make the milk "worse". In fact, grass is a rather unbalanced diet. Feed in these farms is of much higher nutritional quality.

RichE95-partarican1-DwightKSchrute-
= Big Ag Corp. plants.....

***Purchase pasture raised milk products-
Organic Valley and Stonyfield or nothing at all.
Time to boycott all the other non pasture raised dairy.

Dwight-
Them buildings in the photo look like the same ones that left the Bos site....Funny back in 2008 the Bos site looked just like the Tuls site- not anymore. Who knows? Maybe 3 years from now the Tuls buildings will get to ride on a truck to some other place too.
As far as pollution is concerned- only time will tell.

Opposition to the dairy has historic precedence with the Luddites who tried to stop the Industrial Revolution. Failure to move forward with projects like this will simply result in lost market share to California. The small dairy farms pretty much went away over the last generation.

truth1 - operation like this are in part created because people do not like to pay for food. Take a look at dairy, meat and produce prices over the past 30 years and see how they have changed with inflation. Your "inferior food supply" has been created by the consumer.

10% of dairy farms produce 90% of the milk, which is, apparently, very much nutritionally inferior to the other 10% produced by smaller farms.
Apparently, these are facts, not because I "don't like" the big operations for some reason, but just facts.
This means most of the cheeze, butter, ice cream and milk in the stores is inferior.
This is something the near-worthless "FDA" should have been onto long ago....More taxes for nothing.

playing devils advocate here:

Where is the data to support large scale dairies contribute more pollution than small farms? Isolated incidences don't prove anything.

Also, where is the proof that small dairy farms in Rock County will be displaced by this farm or Larson Acres?

Another note, does anyone really realize that only 10% of our dairy farms produce 90% of our milk?

Please, keep in mind that I played the devils advocate here, and these are not my personal opinions...

He should go back to Nebraska,

He drives out smaller local dairies, pollutes the land and fouls the air.

I am all for job creation, but we will loose much more then we gain.

Thanks for the links...It is infuriating that the American food supply has been allowed to become SO inferior just to save pennies with these huge operations.
WHERE can people get butter, ice cream, cheeze, and milk in quantity from grass-fed cows??
This info needs to get out a LOT more!!!
Worthless "gov't" keeping us in the dark some more by omission.

tequilashot must be hitting the bottle hard after seeing this.

@truth1 - Milk from a pastured cow has up to five times more CLA (a potent cancer fighter) than milk from a grain-fed factory farm cow. Also, milk from a grass fed cow has an ideal omega-3 and omega-6 balance, milk from a factory farm cow does not.
.
http://www.stockmangrassfarmer.net/cgi-b...
.
http://www.eatwild.com/articles/superhea...

If you think the mistakes on the Gaz are bad, you should see the spelling on tv news broadcasts...LOL

Correct, concernedperson, it should have been "too." I've fixed it. We strive to be perfect. Alas, we're not. Reporter and copy editors surely know better, but we all make mistakes. Ours are out there for all to see - every day. We'll try to do better.
Scott W. Angus
Editor

HOW MANY JOBS WILL THIS PROVIDE AND ARE THERE ANY STILL TO FILL? IF ANY WERE DO YOU APPLY?

Or is it that the Gazette writers need grammar and spelling lessons?

From the article: Not to bad, said Tuls, who has been through it before on his father’s farms in Nebraska.

It should say, "Not too bad." Yes, in this case, the word should have 2 o's.

I see many typing mistakes in Gazette articles. I think they need a proofreader.

I sure would like to know for sure whether the rumor that milk from pastured cattle is of far more nutritional value than milk from these operations is true.