July 29, 1999
A public health expert is raising red flags about the enormous hog farm in southern Utah.
The expert warns other states with similar farms have had problems, and folks in Utah should be concerned as well.
News Specialist John Daley reports.
North Carolina is the nation's largest hog-producing state, and it has massive industrial hog farms, similar to Utah's Circle Four Farms.
Health agencies in North Carolina have seen a higher incidence of illness in residents who live near those farms.
At a conference today a health expert warned: Utah could see the same thing.
Utah has never seen agriculture like this before.
At Circle 4 Farms, 600,000 hogs are produced a year.
They produce a considerable stench and fill enormous pools with feces and waste.
A University of North Carolina health expert tells a conference today as industrial hog farms have mushroomed there's been an increase in health problems for folks who live nearby.
Melva Fager Okun/Public Health Expert: "PEOPLE WHO LIVE NEAR THESE OPERATIONS HAVE HAD INCREASED PHLEGM, COUGHS, SINUS PROBLEMS, OVERALL INCREASED SICKNESS FROM WHAT THEY EXPERIENCED BEFORE THE OPERATION WENT IN."
Okun says health problems have included: respiratory ailments, headaches and vomiting.
Two preliminary studies in Iowa and North Carolina found those living near hog farms suffered health problems similar to people who worked in the pig plants.
The most common complaint heard from folks living near Circle Four is odor, for which there are no state or federal regulations.
The state agency charged with monitoring the operation says so far it's found no serious health risks.
Don Ostler/Division of Water Quality: "WE DON'T HAVE DATA THAT THERE'S A WATER QUALITY PROBLEM IN ANY SENSE. WE DON'T HAVE ANY REAL DOCUMENTED DATA THERE'S ANY HEALTH PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH THIS YET."
A spokesman for Circle 4 says, "We don't believe the public should be any more concerned about living near us than living near a dairy or other livestock operation. We're an industry leader when it comes to building farms far away from people. The regulations in Utah are tough."
Okun maintains the biggest worry ahead for Utah could be air quality.
Chemicals like ammonia evaporate into the air from massive evaporative ponds.
Melva Okun/Public Health Expert: "IT'S NOT JUST 'GEE, MY HOUSE STINKS,' BUT WHAT DOES THAT MEAN FOR MY FAMILY."
Health experts from North Carolina warn that industrial hog operations have grown so fast it has been difficult for local, county and state governments to properly monitor health hazards.
