In a packed Senate Agriculture Committee meeting on Tuesday, Arkansans from across the state rallied to protect the Buffalo River, one of our most treasured natural resources. The controversial SB290 would strip state agencies of their ability to issue moratoriums against Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs), large farms, and as we’ll get to, just about anything, within watersheds without legislative approval. This absolutely threatens the water quality of the Buffalo River and other precious waterways throughout Arkansas.
Buffalo River: Arkansas’s Crown Jewel at Risk
The Buffalo River isn’t just any waterway—it’s the crown jewel of the Ozarks, attracting over 1.5 million visitors annually and serving as a vital economic engine for the state’s tourism industry. Arkansans care deeply about the river; some advocates for the river have traveled seven hours round-trip repeatedly just to speak for three minutes in its defense today.
This isn’t the first time Arkansans have rallied to the river’s side. Two years ago, a designation change might have changed the “National River” designation to a “National Preserve,” which would have had disastrous effects on the environmental quality of the Buffalo. In a town hall meeting to discuss the change, 1200 people showed up to oppose it.
Now, Sen. Blake Johnson (R-Corning) and the Arkansas Farm Bureau are at it again. SB290 (Johnson’s second crack at this, after failing to ever bring SB84 before the committee) prevents state agencies from imposing moratoriums on permits within any watershed in the state unless it gets approval from the House and Senate Committees on Agriculture.
Everyone who spoke in favor of the bill was a member of the Farm Bureau. Their testimony went in two directions: this bill protects farming in Arkansas and it protects private property rights.
Two issues here: first, as many of these farmers pointed out, farming is already the biggest economic driver in Arkansas. I think they’re doing fine as it is. Second, of course you can do what you want on your own property, and moratoriums don’t prevent that. However, when what you do on your property starts to cause problems for your neighbors, your actions now affect the public, and your rights have to be balanced against the public’s.
The reason farms and CAFOs are so dangerous in watersheds is because they spread. Pollution doesn’t just stay on your land; it permeates throughout the entire watershed. It doesn’t take a lot, either; in 2018 a number of people became ill after swimming in the Buffalo in the middle of an algal bloom caused by large farming operations.
Constitutional and Legal Concerns
Even legislators who expressed general support for agricultural interests raised significant concerns about SB290. Senator Jimmy Hickey (R-Texarkana) indicated he was “broadly in favor of what you’re trying to do,” but expressed serious concerns about the bill’s structure and potential conflicts with the Administrative Procedures Act.
The APA governs agency rule-making. As our legislators have proved over and over again, they lack the requisite expertise to efficiently carry out the business of government. They’re the “big idea” people. In order to carry out the government’s every day work, they create state agencies who do have badly needed expertise.
The public also has an essential role in rule-making. The APA requires that every agency rule have a public comment period so we can make our voices heard. By constructing SB290 to run through legislative committees instead of the rule-making process, Johnson would have almost certainly run afoul of the APA.
Attorney Elizabeth Fletcher, a litigator with thirty years of experience and a member of the Farm Bureau, didn’t mince words with her testimony: “I can assure you y’all will catch a lot of litigation with this.”
Furthermore, the bill contains no defining language. You might think “permit” or “moratorium” don’t need to be defined, but bills have to be limited and focused in scope. As several speakers pointed out, this bill might limit the government’s ability to create rules surrounding just about anything. Remember the fight over crypto mines during last year’s fiscal session? This bill would have removed the ability to permit new mines. Is a prohibition the same as a moratorium? What kind of permits are we talking about?
The bill – and Sen. Johnson – had no answers.
The Science and Spirit Behind Moratoriums
The last time the Buffalo was threatened, we asked Chenoa Summers, an Environmental Services PhD student at ASU, to walk us through why protecting sensitive ecosystems should remain our top priority as a state. You can read that article here.
I want to highlight some of the testimony from our fellow Arkansans.
Gordon Watkins of the Buffalo River Watershed Alliance, himself a farmer and real estate professional from the area, emphasized that good farming means being a good steward not just of your own land, but of your neighbors’ land as well. “My property rights end at my fencerow,” he said, a powerful reminder that private property rights must be balanced with public good when it comes to shared resources like water.
The existing moratoriums on CAFOs in sensitive watersheds have already shown positive results. John Ray of Fayetteville warned that states like Iowa and the Carolinas, which imposed similar restrictions on watershed moratoriums, now face costly and dangerous river clean-up challenges. That’s why private property rights only go so far; when that balancing act between the public and private gets out of whack, the taxpayers foot the bill.
What’s Next
For now, the Buffalo River has earned a reprieve. Facing mounting questions from committee members, Senator Johnson pulled the bill before a vote could be taken. However, SB290 will return, likely with amendments.
The overwhelming turnout of concerned citizens—and the willingness of busy Arkansans to repeatedly travel hours to testify—demonstrates just how deeply Arkansans value the Buffalo River. Our Crown Jewel indeed.
As this legislation moves forward, the passion shown by river advocates sends a clear message: Arkansans stand ready to defend their beloved Buffalo River and the protections that keep it clean for generations to come.
The Governor seems firmly opposed to the bill as it stands and we hear she’s threatened a veto; we don’t know for sure if there are votes to override that veto. But here’s another thing: Johnson is running low on time. Legislators will take a week-long break in two weeks, and after that break, they’ll only have roughly two and a half more weeks. That’s not a lot of time in the grand scheme of things, especially when it comes to tricky legislation like the APA.
Regardless, we’ll be proud to stand with the Arkansans defending our precious Buffalo River.
