Tulsa World
BRIAN FORD CREDIT:World Capitol Bureau
December 01, 2000
OKLAHOMA CITY — Saying property owners and the Department of Wildlife Conservation were denied their due-process rights, Attorney General Drew Edmondson demanded Wednesday that the state Board of Agriculture hold a full hearing on a Beaver County hog farm.
Meanwhile, the Sierra Club announced plans to file suit over allegations that the same hog farm was spewing out ammonia in violation of federal law.
Edmondson said he was disturbed by the treatment the Department of Wildlife Conservation and several property owners have received from the Agriculture Department's Water Quality Services Division. At issue is a permit for a concentrated animal feeding operation submitted to the Board of Agriculture by Seaboard Farms Inc. for its Dorman Farms swine facility near Optima in the Oklahoma Panhandle.
The operation is located near the Beaver River Wildlife Refuge, which is managed by the Department of Wildlife Conservation. Department officials have expressed concerns that the swine farm could hurt the refuge. Landowners in the area also have expressed concerns.
The Board of Agriculture issued a conditional permit to Seaboard in March 1999, but Seaboard has failed to meet certain conditions set by the board, Edmondson said.
In June of this year, the Agriculture Department's Water Quality Services Division accepted a previously rejected Seaboard land permit and validated its license to operate the hog farm, Edmondson said.
"That action usurped the power of the Agriculture Board to consider the permit and whether its conditions had been met, denied the protestants their right to due process and directly violated the express terms of the board's order," Edmondson said. The department had a public meeting on the issue last year, but Edmondson said it did not constitute a public hearing.
Meanwhile, the Sierra Club announced plans to sue Seaboard for breaking the Superfund law.
Patrick Gallagher, senior attorney for the Sierra Club, said the hog farm emits hundreds of tons of ammonia each year. As such, he said the facility violates the federal Comprehensive Emergency Response, Cleanup and Liability Act.
Brian Ford, World Capitol Bureau reporter, can be reached at (405) 528-2465 or via e-mail at mailto:[email protected]
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