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Md, State Police list farm security
WESTMINSTER, Md. - In the
wake of the recent theft of some
$lOO,OOO jki bull semen from farms
in Carroll County, Maryland State
Police have devised some im
portant security measures to help
safeguard such valuable property.
With such a high value and an
easy market for stolen semen, both
in this country and abroad, the
Groups support ag cargo decision
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Farm
commodity and agribusiness
associations have filed with the
U.S. District Court here a joint
“friend of the court” brief sup
porting an Administration decision
not to apply “cargo preference”
provisions to the government’s
farm export “blended credit”
program, according to Gary D.
Myers, president, The Fertilizer
Institute, one of the petitioning
organizations.
The group action, Myers said,
responds to a suit filed by U.S.
maritime interests seeking to
PFA asks drilling bill
CLEARFIELD Legislation
which would strengthen en
vironmental safeguards in gas and
oil well drilling should be clarified
to protect farmers from unfair
liabilities, according to the Penn
sylvania Farmers’ Association
(PFA).
Russell Orner, of Rl, Rockton, a
spokesman for the statewide farm
organization, told a hearing of the
House Conservation Committee in
Clearfield that PFA endorses the
overall anti-pollution goals of H.B.
302 and 570 but recommends
amendments to protect land
owners from clean-up costs if they
weren’t responsible for the
damages.
PFA recommends that the
definition of a liable gas or oil well
owner contained in the House bills
be amended to exempt landowners
who did not participate or incur
costs in the drilling/extraction
operation and who had no control
over the drilling or extraction
operation.
Under the proposed legislation,
PFA believes that landowners who
bought or inherited land with
Md . issues
hay directory
ANNAPOLIS, Md. If you are a
farmer, you may need extra hay
and straw to get your livestock
through this winter. If you are a
contractor, you probably need a lot
of straw for berms. If you keep
horses, you always need hay and
straw...and, if you are a gardener,
you might be looking for mulch
material these days.
One common problem for all of
the above is the tight supply of hay
and straw caused by the drought of
1983. This is where the Marketing
Services Section of the Maryland
Department of Agriculture may
help.
Thomas Butler of MDA has just
compiled a statewide directory of
some 63 Maryland farmers in 17
counties who have supplies of hay
and straw for sale.
You can secure a copy of the
directory by sending a 20-cent
postage stamp and your complete
address to: Hay and Straw
Directory, Marketing Services
Section, Maryland Department of
Agriculture, 50 Harry S. Truman
Parkway, Annapolis, Maryland
21401.
Maryland State Police emphasize
that special concern should be
shown by farmers to secure this
valuable property.
To heljp farmers, the Crime
Prevention Unit and Criminal
Section of the Westminster
Barrack of the Maryland State
Police have developed a four-point
program for the security of items
such as semen.
require that 50 percent of such
farm exports be moved in U.S. flag
vessels. The suit, filed Oct. 14 by
the Transportation Institute and
Seafarers International Union,
holds that the U.S. Department of
Agriculture’s “blended credit”
farm export program is subject to
provisions of the 1954 Cargo
Preference Act, a contention with
which the Administrator of the
Maritime Administration, and the
U.S. Secretaries of Agriculture and
Transportation disagree.
"The problem,” says Myers, “is
♦Xnt o>«»n»wif»e to use of cost) v it S.
abandoned uncapped oil or gas
wells would be liable for the costs
of plugging them which could total
several thousands of dollars each.
The Citizens Advisory Council of
the Department of Environmental
Resources believes there may be
as many as 500,000 abandoned oil
and gas well in Pennsylvania.
In addition, under the definition
of liable owner contained in the
House legislation, a farmer who
receives just a small consideration
for drilling rights, such as fuel for
residential use, would also be
liable for the costs of plugging
wells or restoring drilling sites.
With changes to protect farmers
who have no control or substantial
interest in drilling operations, PFA
teeent mmenti
In- w&ke'
These four points, which each
farmer is urged to review and
implement in the overall security
program of the farm, include:
(1) Record Keeping - As in any
business, proper inventory control
is essential. Keeping proper
records of semen supplies,
recording stock numbers, making
periodic checks of supplies (twice
weekly is suggested), and noting
shipping for ‘blended credit’ ag
exports would scuttle the
program’s objective of boosting
U.S. farm product shipments
abroad, and do4ittle to assist U.S.
maritime interests. ’ ’
The USDA export program
“blends” Commodity Credit
Corporation (CCC) loan guaran
tees to countries purchasing U.S.
farm products with a second
program that allows CCC loans at
minimum or no interest rates.
“Use of U.S. flag ships fpr farm
exports tacks on an added 100 to
changes
supports passage of H.B. 302 and
H.B. 570. Omer told committee
members, “The maintenance of
environmental quality and safety
in oil and gas well drilling and
extraction operations is important
to Pennsylvania agriculture, as
many wells presently exist on our
state’s farmland. Slipshod
operations polluting surrounding
water supplies and land not only
can financially ruin a farmer’s
business but also can destroy the
scenic beauty in rural areas. We
recognize that much more com
prehensive legislation is needed
than that existing under present
law to regulate the potentially
adverse effects of pollution in oil
and gas well operations.”
and reporting any unexplained
losses are important.
(2) Operation I.D. Operation
Identification (marking of
valuables) is an important part of
a resident and community security
program, and so should it be with
the farm. Proper identification
marks and labeling of cannisters
and tanks not only discourages
300 percent to the cost of such
shipments, a cost that totally
negates toe edge which toe blended
.credit program now gives U.S.
farm commodities in the world
market,” Myers contended. The
added shipping cost would be
prohibitive for other farm
products, such as poultry, as well,
he said.
Currently, he added, the blended
credit program is stimulating $1.75
billion in added agricultural ex
ports, an essential boost to the U.S.
agricultural economy. Each $1
billion in ag exports results in
employment of 30,000 Americans,
he said. “Application of cargo
preference to these exports would
destroy the program, and the
benefits to agriculture and* the
overall economy,” he added.
Other organizations sponsoring
the petition are American Soybean
Association, Florida Phosphate
Council, Grain Sorghum
Producers Assn., National
Association of Wheat Growers,
National Broiler Council, National
Corn Growers Assn., National
Cotton Council of America,
National Council of Farmer
Cooperatives, National Forest
Products Assn., National Grain
Trade Council, National Grange,
National Soybean Processors
Assn., National Sunflower Assn.,
North American Export Grain
Assn., Protein Grain Products
international, Rice Millers Assn.,
and Terminal Elevator Grain
Merchants Assn.
plan
theft, it aids in recovery and
prosecution. Markings can be
made by electric engravers,
stamps, etc. with the farmer’s
driver’s license number being the
preferred marking.
(3) Secure Area - In the home, a
resident can set up what is called a
“security closet”. A place where a
closet in the home or farm building
is turned into a place for valuables
by installation of a solid door,
deadlock and pinned hinges. The
fanner realizes that a farm is one
of the hardest things to secure, but
if one area is set aside and that
area is adequately secured, it can
be a storage closet for the farmer’s
valuables.
The room or building should be
of good construction (that which
discourages forced entry). If
needed, steel rods can be welded to
form a jail construction for added
security. Proper dead bolt locks,
pinned hinges, and solid doors
should be instidled. This adds to
the time and noise needed for thtf
criminal to break in, and the
criminal is always worried about
time and noise.
(4) Employee Checks - In a lot of
cases, a fanner will only have a
few trusted and longstanding
employees. But in some cases, a
farmer will have transient em
ployees and special care must be
taken in keeping them from sen
sitive areas of security. You should
do some background checking of
references they give to insure that
you are not placing your farm
assets in the hands of someone not
worthy of your trust.
If a farmer will take the time to
address these four areas of
security, State Police say, he will
not only lessen the opportunity for
himself to become a victim, but he
will have peace of mind to know
that what he has worked for all his
life is secure.
More detailed information or
information on other farm security
should be sought by contacting the
local law enforcement agency
crime prevention unit.