Like the J.G. Boswell Co. in Kings County, the Borbas now are magnets for environmental controversy. State officials and local watchdogs are zeroing in on dairies, questioning the industry's potential to pollute groundwater and fuel nuisances such as flies and odors. George Borba Jr.'s proposed Kern County dairy is under scrutiny after a lawsuit raised environmental issues. The fresh hammer for critics is the legal system, with the Borbas the first Valley dairymen hauled into court before they've even milked a cow in Kern County. The second is Boswell, whose plans for up to 55,196 cows on 7,000 Kings County acres also are under meticulous environmental study, following a lawsuit.
Dairies are an emerging industry for Kern County.
The Borbas were lured by big blocks of land available at a reasonable price. But a legal battle began after the cousins proposed dairies on an isolated chunk of farmland along the Taft Highway. The Board of Supervisors had marked much of the acreage for a town in 1994, but that plan fizzled. The equation seemed right for the Borbas, who bought the land and applied for county dairy permits. County officials agreed, rescinding the town plan in late 1998.