TIMES RECORD • August 24, 2020
American farming is in a dismal condition. Decades after giant, polluting industries – paper, leather, chemicals and many hazardous substances – were either shut down or forced to clean up, we are left with giant, polluting farms. Maine had numerous paper mills and tanneries that fouled the rivers and air of countless “mill towns,” and were famously restored by Sen. Ed Muskie’s Clean Air and Clean Water acts. Agriculture, however, has been nearly exempt from anti-pollution rules. We need wholesale change. We might take a cue from Ed Muskie and start regulating agriculture with health, safety and environmental standards, and bring farm workers, finally, under the protection of wage-and-hour laws. ~ Douglas Rooks