Something Very Fishy Here

[kay-c]

speaking of fishy if anyone is missing a pet fish out of their pond (kinda pink) it was dropped in a friends backyard by a hawk

[Jim Dixon]

Was wondering what was on the property when you moved there?

Without re-reading it, I think I said it was an un-fenced orchard. Pears, and apples. and the other half was leased out to the companies that grew everything from corn to poplar trees for the wind breaks in Saskatchewan.

The person managing the property as a orchard would hand pour buckets of fert along the trees, and had a professional spray it with diazinon. When we bout the place, I knew what a orchardist does - he sprays. But, when he sprayed his trees, and he would turn around, he would shut ff one side of the sprayer so as not to spray towards us.

The grape farmer does not turn off one side - as a matter of fact, he has made 3 passes in the last row, parallel to our property, the mist has spread - drifted so much so, that if a window is left open, I could run my finger across the inside sill, and feel and smell the drift.

Did I move in to the area and now complain about it? Nope. As a matter of fact, I wrote a letter to the major newspapers in our two local cities in response to a woman who had just moved to the city north of the bridge and complained that the air quality was the pits thanks to the farmers. In it, I asked if she was the type of person that would buy a house at the end of the airport runway and complain about the noise.

Even if the vineyard was here before I moved in, it wouldn't mean he can spray who, or what, with what he wants.

As technology and chemistry continue to improve(?) things, it should be mandatory to the farmers, as it is to residents, to use the proper -stuff-.

J

[mycomments]

yep I re-read it and nope didn't see where it said orchard but I would still have guessed it is agriculture area then. Guess owner had to switch to grapes since his orchard was not making money for him to survive? Is it illegal to use fish fertilizer? Guess can move to a residential area that doesn't have agriculture. I hear that up by the westside landfill they have new homes but wait I hear that there is someone who moved there complaining about some smell and dust there too. Oh well. Life goes on.

[Thinktank]

fish spray does not last all summer.

It's a lot better than guthion.

[Jim Dixon]

Well sounds like someone moved into an agriculture area and wants it changed now to please themself? There is less and less land for agriculture use. Let the framers, ranchers live too and make a living. They didn't move into a residential area but was vice versa.

"Sounds like"????? Where in Hades did you hear any sounds? Anyone, that starts off with "Sounds like", or "Fact is", should first do their research because it's obvious you didn't. Please show some respect for all and exercise doing push ups instead of exercise by jumping - - to conclusions. READ before you remove all doubt. You are so wrong. Therefore, source considered.

[Jim Dixon]

yep I re-read it and nope didn't see where it said orchard but I would still have guessed it is agriculture area then. Guess owner had to switch to grapes since his orchard was not making money for him to survive? Is it illegal to use fish fertilizer? Guess can move to a residential area that doesn't have agriculture. I hear that up by the westside landfill they have new homes but wait I hear that there is someone who moved there complaining about some smell and dust there too. Oh well. Life goes on.

Wow! Four guesses and you're still way off. people moved beside a landfill. I moved beside an orchard. I knew they used diazinon. I drove the neighbourhood, located the schools, stores, beaches and other things in the area. I don't demand sidewalks, storm drains, curbs and gutters like dome have done around here recently. Having been a research and systems analyst, I knew what we were in for.

I made concessions with the orchardist. I never complained about him spraying his orchard. I did when he illegally drifted the spray on to our property and he compensated., He turned off one side of the sprayer as he would turn to go up the next row. We compromised. Interestingly enough, as I said, it was unfenced, and at night, I could turn the outdoor lights on and see people, neighbours, in the dark, stealing, not a pear or two, but bags and bags of them. In once case, the wife of a prominent citizen was caught loading up the back of her pick-up right out of the bins of picked pears. Then, it was the apples turn to disappear. Says something about those that I met stealing from their neighbour.

Short of it is, if you even bothered to read this far, is that when a farmer decides to do something new, or use something new, R E S E A R C H it.

The smell of fish does not last all summer, it is sometimes over shadowed by Kumulus - but that is bearable as it dissipates in after the fall harvest. Fish rot stays all summer - and for those that say it doesn't, are fibbing, a friend of the vintner (that would be a surprise), or are always upwind. It becomes more prominent after a rain and is totally necessary.

Bottom line.

• It is totally unnecessary to stink up the area when alternatives are available.
• The Liberal government is, and always will be on the side of business - not Joe citizen - it's what Liberals are. They won't listen or act without paying them their extortion fees and there is no guarantee they will hear anything
• You would sing a different tune if you saw or smelled major changes next door to you.
• Our rights as Canadians are not 'group' rights - they are for everyone, individuals, or en mass

Each department of government, provincial, Federal, and municipal have all, each one, sent me through a ream of transfers from desk to desk. And, not once, was anyone at their desk. Finally reaching some, and some were clearly perturbed that I woke them from their desk, passed the buck from prov to municipal, to federals and back to prov again. No one wants the responsibility of telling some of the biggest contributors to the liberal party to change and upgrade, modernize, compromise, or otherwise.

BTW - this wasn't always the case. The vintner only started dumping his fish rot a few years ago. Prior, we just had to smell the kumulus - and that wasn't so bad.

I known people that moved in and told me how much they hate the smell - and that was before he started using Fish Fertilizer (FF). And, complained about the dust raised, the canons, the time of day when the vintner would start plowing (for one lady, 9 a.m. was too early.)

I understand your feelings that if one moves in to a neighbourhood, they should look before they sign, and/or accept things as they are. But things changed by the farmer and not for the better, when there are other options.

[mycomments]

It wasn't a guess to where you live. Was just a comparrison to the ones who complain about the smell from the dump which they moved next to like some one who moves into an agriculture area. I love living in the rural setting in Lakeview Heights. Now too many comming there and too many for the infrastructure to handle. Less and less of the orchards here as new house built. Lots are getting smaller. People complaining about the orchards after they move here even though they couldn't have missed them before they decided to buy. What does one expect or think happens in argriculture area???

[Babbitman]

If the OP doesnt like the smell or practices of agriculture, he shouldnt live in an agricultural area.
Its just a typical whine you hear so often around here.
"I live beside a farm, and I dont like it. What can I do?"
Instead of "farm", insert 'gas station', 'school', 'prison', 'library', 'warehouse'.

If you dont like living beside a farm, move away.

Or would you rather live beside a farm that doesnt observe such organic practices and sprays some of the most noxious compounds, many of which are proven carcinogens and have an accumulative effect?
You may want to consider yourself fortunate that you live where you do.

[Green-light]

I'd say it's pretty clear that Jim wants a suitable compromise. That's not much to expect and ask for. It's not like he is whining, so much as seeking a resolution that all can live with. Using a different product that is offensive is a drag. Nobody wants that if they can help it. If they can help it. Help. Help. See that word? So, Jim comes up with a suitable alternative by researching. He finds that there is an unscented version that promotes the same results. He is considering the grower's needs. Is the grower considering his?

It's only a win/win when a resolution is found. Jim's ask nor presentation nor ideas are out of line at all in a working community that seeks common goals and expects a level of harmony.

Those of you kicking sand...are the real whiners.

I hope you make some headway, Jim. It reads like you have good cause coupled with ideas of resolution. What more could a good neighbor ask?

[LANDM]

I'd say it's pretty clear that Jim wants a suitable compromise. That's not much to expect and ask for. It's not like he is whining, so much as seeking a resolution that all can live with. Using a different product that is offensive is a drag. Nobody wants that if they can help it. If they can help it. Help. Help. See that word? So, Jim comes up with a suitable alternative by researching. He finds that there is an unscented version that promotes the same results. He is considering the grower's needs. Is the grower considering his?

Is it the same price and efficacy? If it is more money, would the neighbors be prepared to pay the extra cost since they are getting the benefit?

[Green-light]

Is it the same price and efficacy? If it is more money, would the neighbors be prepared to pay the extra cost since they are getting the benefit?

If an agreement is met where both parties needs are met, the dollar figure should not be the first concern you have. It's clear what you hold as priority, but the all mighty buck shouldn't be the first consideration.

I'm sure the unscented version is comparable in order to be marketable. I don't know for certain. I don't care to research the topic. I'm making a judgement and casting an opinion based on what matters to me. My own experience dictates that finding a suitable resolution can sometime cost one party or the other a bit more or less than expected, but when people work together, it all works out in the end and we all win.

Let go of your impression that money should matter first and foremost, and start to embrace what community means and you may find yourself having all you need and getting along in life...with a little help from your from your friends.