Farm News
10-06-06
Local control issue divides state, leaders
By RANDY MUDGETT- Managing Editor
Deemed the most divisive issue in Iowa, local control for the sitings of livestock
facilities continues to rise to the top as an issue legislators must address in the
coming years.
Last week, the USDA released its quarterly Hogs and Pigs Report revealing that
not only has the national pork herd grown in size but it has grown in size mostly
in the Corn Belt (Indiana, Illinois and Iowa).
Prompted by the demand for lower cost fertilizer inputs and relaxed regulations
on the sitings of livestock units, nearly 850,000 more hogs are now being fed in
the three states as compared to one year ago. In total, Iowa is now home to 16.9
million hogs with the largest majority of those animals market hogs (15.82
million).
‘‘The herd is growing,’’ said Ron Plain, University of Missouri livestock
economist. ‘‘The shift is to the Corn Belt because it makes sense to have the
manure next to the corn fields.’’
More stringent manure management regulations, although, have not deterred the
expansion either. In a recent debate in Spencer, Iowa secretary of agriculture
candidates, Denise O’Brien, D-Atlantic, and Bill Northey, R-Spirit Lake, said the
issue of expanding the livestock industry further has divided the state.
‘‘We need the political will to work on this issue so more people can raise
animals, get along and still maintain our quality of life here in Iowa,’’ said O’Brien.
Northey said, ‘‘We have a chance to do it right by being responsive to local
issues, but we need uniform standards that are predictable and based on
science.’’
O’Brien said she was in favor of local control, allowing each county to set its own
livestock siting rules while Northey is in favor of a science-based approach where
all counties follow the same guidelines.
Recently, the Legislative Rules Review Committee voted to challenge new rules
that would give the Iowa Department of Natural Resources director power to
object to sitings of livestock facilities that are near waterways, parks or
environmentally-sensitive areas in the state. DNR Director Jeff Vonk went on the
record saying that local officials deserve to have the power of local control.
Iowa Farmers Union President Chris Petersen agrees. ‘‘It would be better if we
would have some form of local control that puts people first, ahead of hogs,’’
Petersen said Monday. ‘‘Right now, there are big expansion zones in the
Cherokee, Marshall and Hardin county areas.’’
According to Iowa law, hog feeding operations that have more than 2,500 head
must obtain a state permit. In the case of cattle, that number is 1,000 head. The
buildings that require permits must meet a specific criteria to determine whether
the site meets environmental rules and requirements. Although producers that
have less than 2,500 head at a site must still file a manure management plan.
The Iowa Legislature passed new livestock regulations aimed at manure
applications by basing them on phosphorus content. The bill also establishes
greater setback distances from drinking water sources and water bodies, but
these rules have yet to take effect in Iowa.
Under the current law, producers opted to build hog confinement sites just below
the permit limit in order to quicken the pace of constructing a unit. In 2005, 425
units that contain less than 2,500 head of hogs were built in Iowa. An additional
203 permitted sites were also built the same year. This year, the USDA said in its
report Iowa gained an additional 300,000 market hogs, or about 120 buildings
that would hold 2,500 hogs each.
But, that number does not agree with the number of producers who either wish to
expand their operation or build a new operation. The Iowa DNR said in May that
350 (mostly hog) operations in the state planned to build or expand, a greater
number than indicated in the USDA report.
Plain said looking forward, the hog industry can expect to see profits at least for
another year or longer, depending largely on the price of corn and gasoline.
Meanwhile, North Carolina is experiencing a 400,000 head loss in hogs while
Indiana and Iowa gained 300,000 head each. Illinois also reported a 250,000
head gain in market hogs this past year.
‘‘It is likely the breeding herd will grow in the Midwest looking forward,’’ Plain
said. ‘‘Stringent regulations on manure applications and the idea that you raise
the herd next to the feed are bringing the animals back to the Midwest.’’
John Lawrence, Iowa State University Extension livestock economist, said
the growth of hog production in the Midwest is due to a number of factors, most
of all access to cheap feed and closeness to packing facilities.
‘‘On a percentage basis, Kansas and Ohio had more growth than Iowa, Illinois
and Indiana,’’ Lawrence said. ‘‘The eastern Corn Belt also saw more sow
growth.’’