The Greene County supervisors will hold a pair of public hearings Monday on confined animal feeding operations. The supervisors reviewed the master matrices on both CAFOs at a Thursday meeting.
JEMMB Pork Site, proposed by Mitch and Jill Stream for Section 28 of Highland Township, scored 450 points on the matrix. (A minimum of 440 points are needed for Iowa DNR approval.)
Mitch Stream answered questions. The proposal is an expansion that would double his capacity from 2,500 head to 5,000. His plan includes a closure plan. He feeds for Prestage Farms.
The southeast portion of Churdan is also in Section 28 of Highland Township, but Stream said a ridge west of the site makes it not visible from the town.
Board chair John Muir had attended a workshop on hog confinements earlier in the week and demonstrated new knowledge when he mentioned biofilters to Stream. A new technology in odor control involves forcing air from the CAFO through pits filled with woodchips. At this time the technology is prohibitively expensive for most producers.
Neither Lynn nor Travis Hardin were at the meeting to discuss the master matrix for their proposed Hardin Site in Section 23 of Bristol Township. John Everly of Pinnacle Group wrote the manure management plan and site plan and attended on the Hardins’ behalf.
The master matrix scored 480 points, one of the higher scores recently. “The Hardins tend to go beyond what is required,” Everly said.
The site is new, not an expansion, but it is not Lynn Hardin’s first CAFO. He operates a CAFO in Section 28 of Bristol Township at the former Cedar Lane Estates site.
The proposed Hardin Site is near the Felix Finisher site the supervisors discussed earlier this month, but the required two mile separation distances are met.
Supervisor Guy Richardson questioned soil maps showing the manure will be spread on an area marked as “potential alluvial soil.” (Alluvial soil is fine-grained soil deposited by water flowing over flood plains or in river beds. It tends to be loosely packed, allowing more filtration through it.) Everly replied that the DNR does not have rules against that practice.
Hardin Site is near the proposed Felix Finisher site that was the subject of a public hearing Aug. 1. The supervisors voted to recommend disapproval of the construction permit, with the out-of-state ownership of the operation being of prime consideration.
The public hearing on JEMMB Pork Site will begin at 9 am. The public hearing on Hardin Site will begin at 9:30. The complete agenda is posted under the Calendar tab at GreeneCountyNewsOnline.
