We take it personally

The recent guest column by Warren Carter of the Arkansas Farm Bureau justifies his ardent defense of C&H Hog Farms by claiming that “it’s personal” to him. Well, it’s personal, too, for the rest of us who want to preserve the Buffalo National River in its unpolluted state.

Mr. Carter is a master of obfuscation, using diversionary emotional language to make it appear that Bad Old State Government is out to get those struggling farmers who just want to be left alone to raise a few hogs. Mr. Carter conveniently omits that the volume of untreated swine manure that fills those waste lagoons is roughly equivalent to the sewage output of a small city, and that its presence is a clear and present danger to the health of the Buffalo.

Mr. Carter submits that there is no scientific basis for the claim that the concentrated hog waste will harm the Buffalo. It’s clear he has not looked at the studies that show the fragile porosity of the subsurface karst geology and its commensurate vulnerability to

penetration of deleterious nutrients, hormones and chemicals. The impact of this subsurface pollution, in addition to surface runoff, is potentially catastrophic.

Whether it was intentional or procedurally negligent, the state erred in issuing the original permit. We have some empathy for the C&H owners, but it’s hard to look at the way their permit got issued. The Farm Bureau would better serve its members by offering to assist in developing standards for concentrated animal feeding operations placed in locations environmentally suitable for their operations and their waste.

If C&H was shut down tomorrow, it would take half a generation for the porous subsurface karst rock to naturally clear itself. The state is right to pursue shutting down this facility posthaste.

In the meantime, the citizens of Arkansas and all lovers of the Buffalo River everywhere will take preservation of this precious national resource personally. Shut it down!

CHARLES T. CROW Little Rock