A Kent County Circuit Court judge has ruled in favor of a family resisting efforts by the Michigan Department of Agriculture (MDA) to force the chemical spraying or destruction of trees on their property under an obscure 1945 law.

In the February edition of Michigan Environmental Report, we profiled the Vandenbosch family, who purchased an 80-acre tract in northern Kent County. The family soon learned that the MDA, alleging pests dangerous to a nearby orchard might be found on the property, demanded the use of pesticides to control them or the razing of a 15-acre wooded tract on the Vandenbosch property. The estimated cost of razing the woods exceeded $50,000, a cost that would be borne by the Vandenbosches. MDA denied an appeal of the administrative ruling, rejecting a non-toxic plan the Vandenbosches presented as an alternative to the MDA order.

Arguing that the MDA's actions failed to provide due process for their concerns, the Vandenbosch family hired environmental attorney Chris Bzdok of Traverse City and went to court, prevailing on April 23. Judge George Buth ruled: "Landowners have a property interest in their land. The government's act of declaring property to be a nuisance affects a citizen's interest in that property. Here, this Court holds that the MDA failed to provide plaintiffs with due process before declaring their property to be a nuisance. Next, this Court holds that the MDA failed to provide plaintiffs with due process before denying their appeal."

"This is a huge relief after a long and hard battle with the MDA," said Naomi Vandenbosch.

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