ATCHISON — Stephanie Clark is convinced people in Atchison don't want thousands of hogs per day being slaughtered 30 miles up the Missouri River. But getting them to speak out about the proposed Seaboard Farms processing plant has been difficult.
She organized a group of opponents to attend a forum with lawmakers Saturday morning at the old Santa Fe Depot, hoping to force U.S. Congressman Jim Ryun, state Rep. Gerald Henry and state Sen. Ed Pugh to take a stand on the issue.
"Officials are afraid they'll step on people's toes," Clark said. "If they're coming in, the businesses want a piece of the pie."
Despite taxation and education issues pressing at the state and national levels, it was clear most of the 50 people who attended wanted to talk about hogs. A permit for the proposed plant is pending with the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, and the company is waiting on flood-plain reports before proceeding.
"We've got a real big e-mail network," said Maggie Siegmund of St. Joseph, Mo., just across the river from Elwood. "This seems to be a real hot-button issue in this area."
Clare Luke, a retired nurse who lives in Wathena, just west of Elwood, said she was most concerned about the health effects the plant could bring.
"It's going to flow downstream toward Atchison," she said. "I'd hate to have children or grandchildren in Doniphan County."
Pugh, R-Wamego, was the most outspoken lawmaker on the issue. He said Elwood and Doniphan County officials shouldn't entice Seaboard with "corporate welfare."
"I wouldn't buy them in if I was a resident of Douglas County. I wouldn't give them tax abatements or millions of dollars to come," he said.
However, he said, the state has "stringent rules on pollution" that would protect area residents.
"I can tell by the public opinion they'll be monitoring the dickens out of them," he said. "I don't see how we can shut them down as a business."
Henry, D-Cummings, agreed that the state would keep a sharp eye on the plant.
"The senators and representatives in the area are questioning KDHE a lot about the process," he said. "I'd be shocked if KDHE is fast-tracking anything."
Henry said he, like many in attendance, was concerned about the size of the plant.
"Personally, I wish it wasn't so big," he said. "Sixteen thousand hogs a day seems a little more than I'd like to see."
Ryun also was grilled about the hog plant. But, he said, the issue was better handled by local and state officials.
"I'm not trying to dodge the bullet because I know it's a very big issue here," he said. "But we need to make sure we have the right jurisdictions."
No comments
Commenting is turned off for this story.