I have limited experience raising chickens but vivid memories. Every summer as a youngster, I would spend a couple of weeks at my grandfather's farm in western Michigan. Grandpa believed that everyone, including young guests, living under his roof had a responsibility to everyone else, and had to pitch in for the good of us all.

The chore that made the biggest impressions was cleaning the coop. It was amazing how much material can accumulate in a rather short time and how hard in compacted under the bird's feet.

A recent news report discussed a chicken farm located in California. The factory operated a 16.5-acre lagoon where waste products such as urine and feces from the operation were deposited. The factory was built in the 1990s, not far from homes and existing farms in the area and was reported to house some 700,000 chickens.

The waste materials fell through the cage floors to collection conveyors, where the materials were mechanically moved to the end of the operation and disposed into the lagoon.

I still recall the smells from grandpa's coop, and can only imagine the results from that many chickens, let alone how displeased the locals were with the smells that wafted from the pond. Just the fact that the materials were placed in a 16.5-acre holding pond indicates the magnitude of the odors.

Local residents have complained to state and city officials over the years but no action was taken. However, the Humane Society filed a lawsuit on behalf of some area residents accusing the company of failing to report air emissions. While there are still a lot of discovery and legal procedures to come, it appears from the news reports that the company has not kept up proper paperwork and reporting requirements.

Situations such as this give business a bad name, and feed the very false perception that profits are all that matter to large companies. With all the software and technology available today, there is really no excuse for not keeping up on paperwork and permits. Fortunately, most corporate managers do the right thing and encourage their staff to as well. But like grandpa said, we're all under the same roof, and therefore all of us have a responsibility to each other to keep our coops clean, no matter how onerous or unpleasant the chore. PE