The Associated Press reports that Greeley County, Kansas, residents approved a nonbinding referendum in October 2010 to allow large hog confinements in their county. But a vote is necessary to replace laws on the books since 1997 that ban mega-hog operations in the county.
On December 21, Greeley County residents will vote on whether or not to replace that law. According to pressreports, Seaboard Corporation wants to build 120 barns with 1,000 hogs per barn in the area. The operation would cost more than $30 million, and bring 18 jobs to the county.
In 1997, Greeley County, along with a number of other western Kansas counties, voted to reject such hog operations, following a big push from Seaboard Corporation to develop dozens of such large operations in several counties in western Kansas. In 1998 Greeley County repealed a 1994 resolution that allowed large hog operations.
Rural Papers is the voice of the Kansas Rural Center, Inc., a nonprofit organization that promotes the long-term health of the land and its people through research, education, and advocacy. The KRC cultivates grass-roots support for public policies that encourage family farming and stewardship of soil and water. KRC is committed to economically viable, environmentally sound, and socially sustainable rural culture. KRC is funded by private foundations, grants, and individual contributions.
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