Image Courtesy of KnowCAFOs
A non-profit organization in northwest Wisconsin, KnowCAFOs, is concerned about environmental and public health issues associated with development of a large hog-rearing facility. The potential for surface and groundwater contamination in the low, wet landscape of southern Burnett County and northern Polk County from waste produced by this operation are alarming to residents of the area. In addition, residents are concerned about the impacts of airborne pollutants (odor, sulfur dioxide, ammonia, and bacteria) on health, quality of life, and property values. Thriving Earth Exchange has been asked to identify expertise on odor emanating from such a facility and modeling where nearby properties may be impacted, how often, and at what intensity. If such data can be generated, a second project phase will seek real estate expertise to predict potential impact on property values.
An Iowa-based corporation has filed a permit application with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) to operate a hog-farrowing operation comprising 7,500 sows and as many as 26,000 animals. The potential for surface and groundwater contamination in the low, wet landscape of southern Burnett County and northern Polk County from waste produced by this operation are concerning to residents of the area. In addition, residents are concerned about the impacts of airborne pollutants (odor, sulfur dioxide, ammonia, and bacteria) on health, quality of life, and property values.
In collaboration with a local non-profit organization – KnowCAFOs, the Town of Trade Lake and other local governments have a two-prong approach in response to this proposal. The first is providing information and observations about waste management to WDNR for consideration in their permitting decision. Given state law that preempts local governments from prohibiting large operations, the second approach is to specify operating conditions at the Town level that mitigate problems associated with the facility and its waste management.
Thriving Earth Exchange has been asked to identify expertise on odor emanating from such a facility for questions such as where nearby properties may be impacted, how often and at what intensity, and what is the potential impact on property values. Charles (Chuck) McGinley, a now retired nationally-recognized expert in odor issues recommends the use of a “puff model” of atmospheric plume dispersion to provide information about the where, when, and what intensity questions. If an expert can be recruited and the modeling accomplished reasonably soon, we will then seek expertise in property value impacts from odor sources.
Trade Lake Township is a community with a strong social fabric. We are a blend of unique individuals that are drawn to this rural area by a common love for nature, clean air, and respect for the environment. We are hunters, farmers, nature enthusiasts, sportsman, boaters, fisherman, birdwatchers, gardeners and more. Most of us spend a good part of each day outdoors breathing the fresh air, working, exercising, entertaining or just relaxing. We value recreational time spent outdoors with family, friends and neighbors on the many lakes and rivers that surround us, and also understand the important revenue our natural surroundings bring to our community. Even in winter you will see us outside whenever we can. We are biophilic with a strong desire to commune with nature which has drawn most of us to this area and kept past generations from leaving. Although we have different lives, relationships, and connections, we are a community, knitted together. We care for each other, and we care for our community. The love of the land, nature, wildlife, clean water, and clean air to breathe connects us and blurs our differences.
Trade Lake, located within the watershed for the St. Croix National Scenic Riverway, is an area rich in history. Ojibwa Indians traded goods with the Swedish immigrants that settled here, hence the town, lake and rivers namesake. Some of our forested lands were cleared for farms that now dot our countryside. Most of the farmers here are 2nd and 3rd generation farmers and are good stewards of our environment and good neighbors. They too, need clean water and clean air for the health of their families and their livestock. Trade River Forest and Wetlands is a designated State Natural Area (SNA). They surround the Trade River, the largest tributary to the St. Croix River. Overall, this SNA exhibits the highest bird species richness of any site surveyed in the Governor Knowles State Forest and includes two rare birds along with numerous species of greatest conservation need according to the Wisconsin DNR. The abundant natural resources of the area foster tourism and recreational housing development that helps to support businesses in and around our community.
Protecting our clean air and water is a desire which we all share, and that bond has helped us to form a socially cohesive community. The pollution and resulting threats to the local environment posed by the proposed industrial hog factory further fuel our desire to educate ourselves on how to protect the health of our community. In closing, our goal as a community is to:
Four objectives have been identified for potential Thriving Earth Exchange assistance:
1) Continue consultation with Chuck McGinley on odor detection, modeling, and community response. Solicit advise about strategies for public relations built around citizen science and for community members to monitor on-going facility operation.
2) Consult an expert on hog facility design and operation to get lower and upper bound for odors emanating from the proposed facility (e.g., worst- and best-case scenarios). Given the next step, it may be necessary to use an odor surrogate (either hydrogen sulfide or ammonia concentration) to have numeric emission values.
3) Recruit a plume dispersion modeler with expertise in puff models to predict where and how frequently nearby property is impacted. One product could be a map depicting number of days per year that land near the facility would have detectable / objectionable odor levels under different operating scenarios and emission assumptions.
4) Recruit an economist with expertise in property value diminution from negative externalities. Provide evidence from the odor impact modeling, along with the published evidence about diminution of property values. Generate information products for landowners in the vicinity and local public officials showing lower and upper bounds of potential property value impacts.
The fourth objective is conditioned on timely success of step 3 and may be beyond what TEX can support.
Timely completion of these activities is paramount, as the information generated may be relevant to the WI DNR’s permitting decision and to potential lawsuits associated with the adoption of local operating condition ordinances. This is an approximate timeline of steps needed to complete all three project activities in the 12 to18 month timeframe expected for Thriving Earth Exchange projects:
April 2022 – commence project
August 2022 – finalize goals and objectives
October 2022 – recruit needed expertise
December 2022 – assemble all data needed for air quality modeling
March 2023 – modeling completed, maps generated
May 2023 – assemble data needed for property value impact predictions
August 2023 – provide estimates of property value impacts
Steve Ventura retired from the University of Wisconsin-Madison as a professor of environmental studies and soil science. Throughout four decades of research, outreach, and service, he worked with public agencies at all levels of government; non-governmental organizations including environmental groups, land trusts, professional associations, and service organizations; tribal governments and colleges; farmers, urban growers, and food industry workers; foreign agencies and institutions. Expertise in remote sensing and GIS led him into many application domains, including natural resource management, environmental protection, land tenure, community and regional food systems, water quality and quantity, and biofuel production systems. Recent research and outreach focused on soil heavy metal contamination and urban agriculture.
For the second objective, we are seeking an engineer that can provide lower and upper bounds on air emissions from a hog CAFO of the design type and operating capacity of the proposed facility (this information may also come from existing literature). For the third object, we are seeking a scientist to run an atmospheric model that can provide data about areas potentially impacted by odors emanating from the proposed hog CAFO operation. For the fourth objective, we are seeking an economist familiar with localized impacts of negative externalities on property values who can provide a prediction of this based on potential odor intensity and duration maps.
Familiarity with CAFO design and associated odor issues
Experience with quantifying potential air quality issues associated with CAFO operations
Experience and/or desire to participate in community education, outreach, and engagement
Interest in connecting science to local concerns
Experience with puff modeling of point/area sources of odor (or surrogates such as SO2 or NH3)
Familiarity with CAFOs and associated air emissions
Strong listening and collaboration skills
Interest in connecting science to local concerns
Experience with estimating impacts of negative externalities on property values
Familiarity with CAFOs and associated odor issues
Experience and/or desire to participate in community education, outreach, and engagement
Interest in connecting science to local concerns
Thriving Earth Exchange asks all scientific partners to work with the community to help define a project with concrete local impact to which they can contribute as pro-bono volunteers and collaborators. This work can also position the scientists and communities to seek additional funding, together, for the next stage.
Interested in volunteering as a scientist? Apply now!
