Concerned neighbors are waiting for an appellate court decision over a proposed hog farm south of Oglesby.
The group, “Save Our Sandy” is named after a nearby creek to the would-be facility in Wenona.
Austin Moore, representing the S.O.S group, told a three-judge panel in Springfield last month that the neighbors are worried about strong odors and environmental damage from the 20,000 head hog facility. It would be operated by VMC Management Corporation.
“S.O.S. members live, work, and recreate in the immediate vicinity of VMC’s proposed facility – some as close as a mere 2,000 feet away,” Moore told the panel.
Moore outlined the concerns of the S.O.S. group, including “odors of the nearly 20,000 hogs, air and water pollution, increased traffic, diminution of their property values, loss and value of their business, and a loss of enjoyment of their properties and recreational activities in and along Sandy Creek.”
Rockford lawyer Don Manning represents VMC.
“What is terrible public policy in my view is to have anybody who participated in any way in the underlying process, to have the right to hold the project up for two years. I know from personal experience that people aren’t coming to the state because of problems with this.”
Manning argued that agriculture is a huge part of the state's economy.
"When the legislature put together the livestock management facilities unit, the legislature was saying to operators, not just in Illinois, but regionally, nationally even: If you come to our state, and you follow these rules, you can operate.”
The Illinois Department of Agriculture already approved the project. A lower court ruled the “Save Our Sandy” group did not have legal standing to bring the lawsuit. It’s unclear when this panel will release its decision.
