ORLEANS TOWNSHIP—
Federal and state agencies excavated a farm in Ionia County after they got a tip that hazardous chemicals were buried on the property.The farmer, Jerry Gallagher, 79, was outraged, saying he doesn't know what he has done wrong.
Gallagher's Farm Services is located on Ostrum Road in Orleans Township east of Belding. Gallagher has farmed in Ionia County for almost 54 years.
"They completely humiliated us," said Gallagher. He said investigators showed up Tuesday night, armed and wearing bullet proof vests.
The are looking for dangerous chemicals, but Gallagher has no idea what.
As of 9 p.m. Wednesday, heavy equipment was still on scene.
Crews from the Environmental Protection Agency, working with the state Department of Environmental Quality and Department of Agriculture, served Gallagher's Farm Service with a search warrant.
"I was very nice to them; I tried to be as calm as I could," said Gallagher. "They said they're going out to the back of our facility here, and they said that somebody said we're burying chemicals, which we do not do. We sell chemicals, we don't bury them."
Gallagher sells wholesale farm chemicals, like fertilizer, for farmers to spread on their fields.
A spokesman from the DEQ said they have good reason to believe there are hazardous chemicals buried on the property.
The farmer said investigators went inside his home, took paperwork, even confiscated his gun collection.
Gallagher said his operation just had a clean state inspection this spring. Water and soil samples came back clean, after several changes were made to be compliant, he said.
The Gallaghers farm 4,500 acres.
Very little information is available from the state right now about exactly what they're looking for or how long the investigation will take.
