The co-owner of a popular Little Compton farm stand has come forward and claims that the crop cannons he uses to deter birds from his sweet corn crop are necessary and protected under the state’s Right To Farm Act.

Ian Walker, owner of Walker’s Roadside Stand along with his father Coll, made his case for the cannons in an open letter to town officials mailed Monday, August 14, four days after the town council voted to send a cease-and-desist order following complaints that cannons near Old Main Road were disrupting the quality of life.

Until the letter was received, and even after the council approved the cease and desist order, the identity of the farmer who own the cannons had been unknown.

“I would like to acknowledge that there were propane cannons used by Walker’s Farm to control birds in sweet corn on property owned by Ferolbink Farms on Old Main Road as well as on West Main Road in Little Compton,” Walker wrote. “Other methods of bird control that we have tried, some of which we still use, include balloons, bird repellent spray, screechers and lasers. Of all these methods, propane cannons are by far the most effective, and are indeed a necessity when growing sweet corn.”

“I believe my right to use them is protected under the Right-to-Farm Act, which was created to protect farmer’s rights in situations like this.”

Following receipt of the letter, the town issued the cease-and-desist order to the farm, informing the Walkers that the cannons were being operated “at a level of unreasonable noise.”

“You are hereby order to cease and desist using crop cannons in this manner.”

When the issue initially came to a head in July, the cannons were reportedly firing off every couple of minutes to a degree that Councilor Patrick McHugh and others found unacceptable.

The sentiment was not unshared — more than a handful of residents who live within earshot of the cannons made informal complaints of their own. Since then, as the sweet corn season wanes, so too have the frequency of the blasts.

Though the use of cannons is winding down, Mushen said the issue remains and will not be shelved during the off-season.

Instead, the town is inviting experts from URI and DEM to discuss the science behind bird control in farming, the use of crop cannons and other bird-scaring devices and, he added, “what Little Compton might encourage our farmers to do different so that we may have a different year in 2024.”

That meeting will take place Thursday, Oct. 19.