[HISTORY: Adopted by the Annual Town Meeting 11-18-2008 by Art. 15.
Amendments noted where applicable.]
A.
The purpose and intent of this bylaw is to state with emphasis the
right to farm accorded to all citizens of the Commonwealth under Article
97 of the Constitution, and all state statutes and regulations thereunder,
including but not limited to MGL c. 40A, § 3, Paragraph
1; MGL c. 90, § 9; c. 111, § 125A; and MGL c.
128, § 1A. We the citizens of Westminster restate and republish
these rights pursuant to the Town's authority conferred by Article
89 of the Articles of Amendment of the Massachusetts Constitution,
("Home Rule Amendment").
B.
This General Bylaw encourages the pursuit of agriculture, promotes
agriculture-based economic opportunities, and protects farmlands within
the Town of Westminster by allowing agricultural uses and related
activities to function with minimal conflict with abutters and Town
agencies. This bylaw shall apply to all jurisdictional areas within
the Town.
A.
The word "farm" shall include any parcel or contiguous parcels of
land, or water bodies used for the primary purpose of commercial agriculture,
or accessory thereto.
B.
The words "farming" or "agriculture" or their derivatives shall include,
but not be limited to, the following:
(1)
Farming in all its branches and the cultivation and tillage of the
soil;
(2)
Dairying;
(3)
Production, cultivation, growing, and harvesting of any agricultural,
aquacultural, floricultural, viticultural, or horticultural commodities;
(4)
Growing and harvesting of forest products upon forest land, and any
other forestry or lumbering operations;
(5)
Raising of livestock, including horses;
(6)
Keeping of horses as a commercial enterprise; and
(7)
Keeping and raising of poultry, swine, cattle, ratites (such as emus,
ostriches and rheas) and camelids (such as llamas and camels), and
other domesticated animals for food and other agricultural purposes,
including bees and fur-bearing animals.
C.
"Farming" shall encompass activities including, but not limited to,
the following:
(1)
Operation and transportation of slow-moving farm equipment over roads
within the Town;
(2)
Control of pests, including, but not limited to, insects, weeds,
predators and disease organism of plants and animals;
(3)
Application of manure, fertilizers and pesticides;
(4)
Conducting agriculture-related educational and farm-based recreational
activities, including agri-tourism, provided that the activities are
related to marketing the agricultural output or services of the farm;
(5)
Processing and packaging of the agricultural output of the farm and
the operation of a farmer's market or farm stand, including signage
thereto;
(6)
Maintenance, repair, or storage of seasonal equipment, or apparatus
owned or leased by the farm owner or manager used expressly for the
purpose of propagation, processing, management, or sale of the agricultural
products; and
(7)
On-farm relocation of earth and the clearing of ground for farming
operations.
The right to farm is hereby recognized to exist within the Town
of Westminster. The above-described agricultural activities may occur
on holidays, weekdays, and weekends by night or day and shall include
the attendant incidental noise, odors, dust, and fumes associated
with normally accepted agricultural practices. It is hereby determined
that whatever impact may be caused to others through the normal practice
of agriculture is more than offset by the benefits of farming to the
neighborhood, community, and society in general. The benefits and
protections of this bylaw are intended to apply exclusively to those
commercial agricultural and farming operations and activities conducted
in accordance with generally accepted agricultural practices. Moreover,
nothing in this Right to Farm Bylaw shall be deemed as acquiring any
interest in land, or as imposing any land use regulation, which is
properly the subject of state statute, regulation, or local zoning
law.
A.
In order to promote harmony between farmers and their new neighbors,
the Town of Westminster requests selling landholders and/or their
agents (and assigns) to provide notice to prospective purchasers as
follows:
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"It is the policy of this community to conserve, protect and
encourage the maintenance and improvement of agricultural land for
the production of food, and other agricultural products, and also
for its natural and ecological value. This disclosure notification
is to inform buyers that the property they are about to acquire lies
within a town where farming activities occur. Such farming activities
(which may occur on holidays, weekdays, and weekends by night or day)
may include, but are not limited to, activities that cause noise,
dust and odors. Occupying land within Westminster means that one should
expect and accept such conditions as a normal and necessary aspect
of living in such an area."
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B.
A copy of this disclosure notification shall be provided by the Town
to landowners from time to time by mail. A copy of the disclosure
notification shall be posted in Town Hall and be available for distribution
from the Planning Board or its designee and may be published on brochures
or Town websites.
A.
Any person who seeks to complain about the operation of a farm may,
notwithstanding pursuing any other available remedy, file a grievance
with the Select Board, the Zoning Enforcement Officer, or the Board
of Health, depending upon the nature of the grievance. The filing
of the grievance does not suspend the time within which to pursue
any other available remedies that the aggrieved may have. The Zoning
Enforcement Officer or Select Board shall forward a copy of the grievance
to the Agricultural Commission or its agent, which shall review and
facilitate the resolution of the grievance, and report its recommendations
to the referring Town authority within an agreed-upon time frame.
B.
The Board of Health, except in cases of imminent danger or public
health risk, shall forward a copy of the grievance to the Agricultural
Commission or its agent, which shall review and facilitate the resolution
of the grievance, and report its recommendations to the Board of Health
within an agreed-upon time frame.
If any part of this bylaw is for any reason held to be unconstitutional
or invalid, such decision shall not affect the remainder of this bylaw.
The Town of Westminster hereby declares the provisions of this bylaw
to be severable.
In the event of conflict between this bylaw and all other Town
regulations, this bylaw shall take precedence. In the event of conflict
between the bylaw and federal or state law, federal or state law shall
take precedence respectively.
