Planners then present their findings to planning commissioners who approve or deny the project. Even so, Kings and Tulare counties are working to tighten dairy regulations. Tulare was close to adding dairy guidelines to its general plan but was stalled when the state attorney general filed two lawsuits against the county over proposed dairies. The lawsuits, now settled, are forcing officials to broaden environmental studies of dairies. Kings County officials say a new approach to dairies is on their agenda.
Localized regulations can do it much better.
In all counties, once a dairy is running, environmental oversight is left mainly to the state's regional water quality control boards. To prepare for the EPA, a coalition of state agencies, led by the State Water Resources Control Board in Sacramento, is working on fostering more environmental stewardship among dairy operators. To be certified, dairymen can take classes from University of California Cooperative Extension experts on how to protect the environment. The California Dairy Quality Assurance Program does not establish new rules for dairies or introduce other enforcement measures, says Jack Hodges, who heads the program. The federal government has significantly raised the priority of this across the nation.