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Large Poultry Operation Opponents Suffer Legal Defeat

SALISBURY, Md. (AP) - A judge has blocked an environmental group's challenge to a large-scale poultry farm on Maryland's Eastern Shore.

The judge on Thursday upheld a decision by the Wicomico County Board of Appeals not to hear an appeal from the Salisbury-based Concerned Citizens Against Industrial CAFOs.

CAFO is an acronym for concentrated animal-feeding operation.

The judge agreed with the county that that the group missed a 30-day deadline last November for filing its appeal.

The Daily Times of Salisbury reports that the group faxed in the documents on the 30th day, but that they were time-stamped 27 minutes after county offices closed for the day.

An attorney for the county argued that allowing the late appeal to go forward could have invited a lawsuit from the property's owner.

Don Rush is the News Director and Senior Producer of News and Public Affairs at Delmarva Public Media. An award-winning journalist, Don reports major local issues of the day, from sea level rise, to urban development, to the changing demographics of Delmarva.