An ag-gag law prevents people from coming onto your farm under false pretenses, basically from the public doing undercover investigations on your farm. Some states have it, some don't.
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Often I read/hear people say, if you have nothing to hide what's the problem? Yea, it doesn't quite work that way. 

What an absolute privilege and honor to receive the Vim Wright "Building Bridges" award from the Washington Association of Conservation Districts! A huge thank-you to our local Whatcom Conservation District not only for nominating Rich but for all that they do for Whatcom County! There are so many people that work together to keep Whatcom County a place that we can all enjoy and WCD is at the top. A bridge connects two sides. Building bridges, connecting sides, always involves more than one person. This is an award for Whatcom County! 

Whatcom Conservation District is Proud to Nominate Local Farmer for Conservation Award.

​Whatcom Conservation District nominated Rich Appel of Appel Farms for his environmental leadership in the Whatcom County agricultural community. On November 27, 2018 he was awarded the Vim Wright ‘Building Bridges’ award at the 2018 annual meeting of the Washington Association of Conservation Districts (WACD) in Kennewick, WA.  

The prestigious award is given to individuals who work within the arena of conservation to foster understanding and partnerships, through community collaborative efforts. The award is given in honor of Vim Wright, a long-time member of the Washington Conservation Commission, who worked tirelessly to bring traditional agriculture and environmental representatives together to work on conservation projects. Just like Vim Wright, Rich Appel is an environmental leader and has continued to facilitate important community partnerships between Whatcom CD and various stakeholder groups for the betterment of Whatcom County. 

Have you ever wondered what goes into feeding dairy cows? It's a lot more than just giving them some hay and grain!

​Hello my name is Merlin Ryks. I am an independent Dairy consultant who has the privilege of working with Appel Dairy with their Dairy’s nutrition. You may have heard that “happy cows are productive cows” and I believe that describes the Appel Dairy. They make a huge effort to keep their cattle as comfortable and as well fed as possible.
Most of the dairy's forage are grown on their own farm. These forages are harvested at the most optimum time to produce the most digestible feed possible. The grass silage for example that grows in this pacific northwest climate is some of the most digestible grass grown in the United States. Highly digestible feed, if fed correctly, promotes more productivity by the cow and less waste.

Manure is a valuable resource. Our lagoons are valuable tools used to store our manure until we can use it properly, safely and productively. The vast majority of lagoons are built to NRCS (Natural Resources Conservation Services) standards.
Lagoon Considerations:
 - Fertilization Requirements
 - Number of Cows
 - Manure Distribution Method
 - Existing Facilities

Keep reading for Storage period, site, & geological considerations plus lagoon specifics, permeability standard, clay liner requirements and more.