Engineers Conclude Road Near Proposed Swine Operation Safe For Trucks

By Gordon HopkinsA special meeting was held Tuesday, September 19, 2023, between the Gage County Highway Department, the special use permit applicants of Summit Pork swine operation and Island Grove Township board members.The proposed facility has garnered considerable opposition and one of the issues raised by opponents is the road.However, engineers have examined the road and determined the road should be able to handle the semi traffic.Also invited to the meeting were Wymore and Lewiston School representatives, as well as Planning and Zoning (P&Z) chairperson Jeff Argo.The Island Grove Summit Swine operation, proposed by Iowa-based Summit Pork, is a planned CFO (concentrated animal feeding operation) expected to hold an estimated 6,200 animals in section 25 of Island Grove Township, just north of Liberty and near the Gage-Pawnee County line.While the operation would belong to Summit Pork, the animals would actually be provided by Fairbury-based Livingston Enterprises Inc. (LEI).The land belongs to Otto Farms, which would provide the land to build the facility and then use the liquid hog manure from the CAFO to be injected as fertilizer on farm ground.In attendance were: Highway Superintendent Mark Kuhnke, P&Z Administrator Lisa Wiegand, Gage County Attorney Roger Harris, Summit Pork and Island Grove Township representatives and their attorneys, landowner Dean Otto, Bruce Livingston of Livingston Enterprises (swine producer), Lewiston Superintendent Rick Kentfield and Gage County District Six Supervisor Don Schuller.Many opponents of the CAFO believe the road cannot handle the increased traffic. Superintendent Kuhnke presented a package prepared by Mainelli Wagnar and Associates, an engineering firm that had previously visited the roads in question. Don Schuller reported, “They concluded the road will be adequate for semi and school bus travel provided the road is maintained to state standards for township roads.”There was also discussion about the weight bearing rating of the bridge north of the proposed site. The rating currently posted is 32 tons for single axle trucks. The engineers concluded the bridge rating exceeds 40 tons for trucks with longer axle spans.In addition to the road, P&Z is also reviewing potential water contamination and considering a decommissioning plan. Once P&Z finalizes their recommendations, the matter will go to a vote of the Gage County Board Supervisors.On September 14 and 15, Supervisor Schuller drove to Iowa and visited multiple Summit Pork operations. In one of his regular county updates, Schuller wrote, “I visited numerous swine operations with Summit representative Mitch Baum. All Summit Pork operations have rows of trees and shrubs on three sides, with trees randomly placed between the road and the buildings for aesthetics. All locations had good grass stands that are well groomed. There was no smell when driving by or sitting in the driveway. We stood in the exhaust of the fans which were operating at maximum speed, and there is odor. We could talk without yelling at 20 feet from the fans.”Don Schuller’s complete update can be found on the editorial pages of this Friday’s digital edition of FJN.

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