Group seeks permanent ban on hog lagoons

Dolutha Hall of Duplin County explained to N.C. Environmental Justice Network members in Tillery Saturday that the proposal would permanently ban lagoons and sprayfields.

If the legislation is successful, Hall said, that would force the hog industry “to clean up its act and implement new technology.”

The news comes as the 10-year hog farm moratorium in North Carolina comes to an end in September. Lagoons and sprayfields have long been criticized by opponents for their smell and blamed for ill effects on health.

Hall's husband, Devon, told the group another bill would put a cap on production and offer cost sharing to operations who implement new waste disposal methods which are expensive.

Naeema Muhammed, a community organizer from Edgecombe County, said that bill would also include a program for people affected by hog operations.

Gary Grant, director of Concerned Citizens of Tillery and a member of the Network, explained to the audience North Carolina is second in the nation in hog production, which represents 10 million hogs. State hog farms produce 13 million pounds of hog waste a day into the open-air pits, according to state agricultural officials. The waste is later sprayed on fields as fertilizer.

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Source: Daily Herald

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