Massachusetts protects commercial agriculture from nuisance lawsuits under MGL Chapter 111 Section 125A, recognizing farms operating consistent with generally accepted practices as not constituting a nuisance.
MGL Chapter 111 Section 125A establishes Massachusetts Right to Farm protections. The statute provides that no farm operation conducted for at least one year shall become a public or private nuisance due to changing conditions in or around its locality, provided the operation does not violate state and federal law and uses generally accepted agricultural practices. Most Massachusetts cities and towns have also adopted local Right to Farm bylaws that provide additional protections and require dispute resolution before litigation. The law shields against complaints related to noise, odor, dust, and operating hours typical of farm work.
Cities or neighbors attempting to enforce nuisance claims against protected farm operations may have actions dismissed and may face attorney fee awards in some circumstances.
Brookline, MA
Brookline's General By-Laws and nuisance control provisions prohibit animals from creating persistent noise disturbances. Animal Control handles complaints a...
Brookline, MA
Brookline's Article 8.15 restricts construction noise activities on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays to hours before 8:00 PM. Weekday construction hour limit...
Brookline, MA
Brookline regulates noise under General By-Laws Article 8.15 (Noise Control). The bylaw prohibits Noise Pollution, defined as sound exceeding the Background ...
Brookline, MA
Brookline prohibits parking for more than 2 hours on streets between 6 AM and 1 AM (Sunday/holiday exempt). Overnight parking of more than 1 hour is prohibit...
Brookline, MA
Brookline issues commercial parking permits for $600/year allowing parking on designated residential side streets within 1/4 mile of a commercial district. T...
Brookline, MA
Brookline residents may use private driveways for personal vehicles. The overnight street parking ban applies to those without off-street parking. Blocking a...
See how Brookline's farm nuisance protection rules stack up against other locations.
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