NORTON ? Norton County cannot adopt rules on mega-hog farms and other confined feeding operations that are stricter than state regulations, a judge has ruled.

Norton County commissioners voted in February to adopt laws requiring a top on waste lagoons to control odor and protect groundwater, more deep soil testing and a distance of three miles between confined feeding operations.

The Kansas Livestock Assn. and three Norton County producers filed a lawsuit, claiming the rules violated state law. Commissioners had agreed to wait for the court’s decision before the rules would go into effect.

But District Judge Michael Barbara declared the new regulations null and void in a ruling Thursday.

“We are extremely pleased the judge has concluded our position supporting uniform regulations across the state is correct,” Robert Clydesdale, the Kansas Livestock Assn.’s North County director, said Friday.

It is not known yet whether county commissioners intend to appeal the decision. Commissioner John Miller said he had not had time to review the ruling.

The plaintiffs had argued that House Bill 2950, enacted by the Kansas Legislature in 1998, barred counties from changing the statutory provisions governing confined feeding operations. The plaintiffs claimed the law was meant to assure the uniform statewide regulation of the facilities.

Commissioners said the one-size-fit-all state regulations did not address the environmental concerns in their county, which has a closer groundwater table and a concentration of animal feeding facilities.