Ben Tindall, Executive Director of Save Family Farming, issued a statement regarding the Washington State Department of Ecology’s lack of transparency in its ongoing effort to punish 85-year-old small family farmer Bob Greiff over a water rights legal technicality.
“Someone isn’t telling the truth. Ecology claims it’s tried to work with Mr. Greiff to resolve his water rights details, but Mr. Greiff and his highly-experienced consultant, Tim Reierson, say that’s simply not true. The truth here is critically important, because the future of Mr. Greiff’s entire farm hangs in the balance.
“While Mr. Greiff and Mr. Reierson–who himself used to work for Ecology–have been incredibly transparent with their efforts, Ecology has not. Instead, the agency hides behind vague, dubious claims of collaboration without any evidence and not supported by the facts.
“Ecology leaders have repeatedly claimed that Mr. Greiff failed to provide information needed to iron out the technicality, but have never specifically said what that information is. That is not oversight. That is entrapment. Why is Ecology refusing to spell out what this farmer can do to comply with their demands, while at the same time hammering him with farm-ending fines? What hoop do they want Mr. Greiff to jump through?
“Will this powerful state agency continue to hide behind vague statements as it crushes a small family farm’s legacy? Are Ecology leaders telling the truth when they say they’ll help solve legal water rights issues with water users that are willing to work with them? This isn’t just crucial for Mr. Greiff, it’s an existential issue for thousands of farms all over Washington state.
“Until Ecology provides clear, specific, and verifiable answers, it appears the agency is not acting in good faith toward this 85-year-old small family farmer near Spokane. Is the department interested in collaboration, or does it prefer to wield its heavy hand of regulation against family farming without even giving a transparent explanation of why?
“Ecology needs to prove that its claims of a collaborative approach are anything more than just lip service.
“The agency’s ability to tell the truth is critically important not just to Mr. Greiff’s legacy, but to the future of farming across Washington state, as many family farms continue to buckle under the pressure of crushing regulation from Ecology and other state agencies.”
Press Contact: Dillon Honcoop, dhoncoop@savefamilyfarming.org