State seeks comments on chicken composting

? State environmental officials seek public comment on what would be the largest chicken composting operation in Kansas.

The proposed site would be in Reno County in central Kansas.

Under the proposal, about 100,000 chicken carcasses would be composted every six weeks with straw and hay for use in fertilizer, officials said. The hens would come from the nearby Cal-Maine poultry farm, which currently sends the dead chickens out of state to be used in animal feed.

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment is considering a permit for the composting site.

A copy of the application and public notice has been posted on the KDHE Bureau of Waste Management web site at www.kdheks.gov/waste.