Cypress Villages

There are no "large" livestock operations for a significant distance on
any
side of Cypress Villages, nor are there any planned.
The farm between Cypress Villages and Abundance Ecovillages does not
have hogs, but rather an approximately 200 head cattle
feeding operation. There is odor for a month or so a year at the SE
corner in the commercial area, but this is a problem we think we will
be
eliminated in time.
The prevailing winds are from the Northwest most of the year, and
Maharishi
Vedic City is that direction for Cypress Villages, and we get no odors.
The cattle smell is cyclical, seasonal and wind sensitive. We have
noticed that we can smell the cattle at the corner of Highway One and
Airport road sometimes, but by going up to the turn-in for Cypress
Villages and going onto the land, the smell almost always has
disappeared.
People at EcoVillage have told us there is very seldom a noticeable
smell, but we still want to work together and go to the farmer and look
for
solutions. Our designer thinks that there may be a technical solution,
in that the farmer may be able to utilize a Methane Digester or similar
processor to put the waste to good use. See
http://www.iowadnr.com/energy/renewable/methane.html.
We also think that he will soon see that it is a simple matter of
property
values: his land will increase in value if he works as a neighbor to be
odor-friendly. We have met this farmer several times, and believe he is
interested in good long term relations as long as his livelihood is
maintained.