[HISTORY: Adopted by the Annual Town Meeting of the Town of Adams 6-18-2007
by Art. 25. 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; c. 90,
§ 9; c. 111, § 125A; and c. 128 § 1A. We the
citizens of the Town of Adams 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 Adams 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 of Adams.
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 Christmas trees;
(5)
Cultivation of sugar maple trees for the production of
maple products;
(6)
Growing and harvesting of forest products and any other
forestry or lumbering operations; raising of livestock, including horses;
(7)
Keeping of horses as a commercial enterprise;
(8)
Keeping and raising of poultry, swine, cattle, sheep,
goats, rabbits, ratites (such as emus, ostriches and rheas), camelids (such
as llamas, alpacas, and camels) and other domesticated animals for food and
other agricultural purposes, including fiber and fur-bearing animals (not
to include exotic animals);
(9)
Keeping of honey bees;
(10)
Fish hatcheries.
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 organisms of plants and animals;
(3)
Application of manure, fertilizers, and pesticides;
(4)
Conducting agriculture-related educational and farm-based
recreational activities, 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;
(7)
On-farm relocation of the earth and the clearing of ground
for farming operation;
(8)
Construction and use of farm structures and facilities
for the storage of animal wastes, farm equipment, pesticides, fertilizers,
agricultural products and livestock, for the processing of animal wastes and
agricultural products, for the sale of agricultural products, and for the
use of farm labor, as permitted by local and state building codes and regulations;
including construction and maintenance of fences.
A.
The right to farm is hereby recognized to exist within
the Town of Adams. The above-described agricultural activities may occur on
holidays, weekdays, and weekends by night or day and shall include the accompanying
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 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 imposing any land use regulation, which is properly the subject of state
statute, regulation, or local zoning bylaw. This bylaw does not supersede
local, state or federal laws or regulations or private covenants.
A.
The Town will provide a copy of the following notice
by posting a copy of the notice at the Adams Town Hall and at the Adams Public
Library, and will include the notice and copy of the bylaw on the Town's
official website: "It is the policy of the Town of Adams 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 or
occupants that the property they are about to acquire or occupy lies within
a town where farming activities occur. Such farming activities may include,
but are not limited to, activities that cause noise, dust and odors. Buyers
or occupants are also informed that the location of property within the Town
may be impacted by commercial agricultural operations, including the ability
to access water services for such property under certain circumstances."
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
may 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 with all involved parties.
B.
The Board of Health, except in cases of imminent danger
or public health risk, may 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 with all involved parties.
A.
If any part of this bylaw is for any reason held to be
unconstitutional or invalid, such decision(s) shall not affect the remainder
of this bylaw. The Town of Adams hereby declares the provisions of this bylaw
to be severable.
