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Perrysburg farmer, still recovering from winter ice jam damage, having robust crop

Although some of the damage to the River Hollow Horse Farm are still evident, the farm is running at 80% of its production capacity.

PERRYSBURG, Ohio — Last February, an ice jam broke on the Maumee River and sent a wall of debris and destruction onto Maumee's Sidecut Park and two farms in Perrysburg.

Although some of the damage to the River Hollow Horse Farm are still evident, John Moser's corn was planted on May 16 and looks to be a robust crop. 

The farm is running at 80% of its production capacity with a lot of new fencing. 

The problem last winter wasn't the water, but broken trees from upriver. 

"It's not our stuff.. it's Waterville and Grand Rapids all upriver..decks and just crap," Larry Hutson said. 

Even after the ice melt last spring, it still left between eight to ten feet of wood piles. They spent a week moving it into smaller piles for a small burn but the EPA wouldn't allow them to burn it. 

"Heaven forbid it ever happens again but when ice jams up the water pushes back this way it could affect not just this farm but easily downstream," John Moser said. 

But then Republican state Rep. Haraz Ghanbari, from Perrysburg, convinced the agency to go to the farm and see the damage first hand, maybe bend their rules and let the farmers manage the debris with a small controlled burn. 

"That washed ashore from the Maumee River in the ice jam, like a glacier. Where the glacier stops it's where the wood stops. That's what happened here," Ghanbari said. 

Meanwhile, the farmers are hoping to get a decision this summer and take care of the woodpile in the fall.

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