Prairie Rivers Network is helping yet another group of residents who have joined together to oppose the construction of a hog factory farm in their community. The residents live in Menard County, home to Lincoln’s New Salem State Historic Site. The proposed 9,300-hog facility would be located about 5 miles west of the historic site and the town of Petersburg. This puts the town and historic site downwind of the proposed facility, and residents are worried that the factory farm will ruin tourism, historical sites, quality of life, and nearby streams. Other factory farms have ruined the lives of their neighbors with foul stenches and gross pollution. You can hear their stories in our short documentary, “Living in Confinement.”
This new Petersburg group recently learned they will have more time to voice their concerns about the hog farm because the Department of Agriculture failed to notify the public about the planned construction. Prairie Rivers Network sent the group the legal citation for this requirement, and a few phone calls later, the Department of Agriculture acknowledged the misstep and announced the process will have to begin again. We will keep you updated as this fight against the factory farm continues.
Read more about the proposed factory farm and the concerns of neighbors and Petersburg residents in this January 8 news article from the Illinois Times.
