CARTHAGE, Ill. — A pair of hog farms proposed for southwestern Illinois by Carthage-based Professional Swine Management (PSM) are awaiting the approval of construction permits from the Illinois Department of Agriculture (IDOA), though one site still lacks a necessary endorsement from county board members.

The fate of Junction Acres LLC’s proposed 5,600-sow farm, to produce nearly 2,500 pigs per week – planned for a site 1.3 miles northwest of LaCrosse – is now in the hands of the Hancock County Board, which was expected to issue a permit decision as soon as yesterday.

In neighboring McDonough County, a similar operation planned by South Morgan Acres is now awaiting final IDOA approval, according to Dr. Bill Hollis, PSM executive director.

“Both projects are moving along well and public meetings have been held for both,” said Hollis, whose company services more than two dozen hog operations in Illinois, Ohio, Indiana and Missouri. “In McDonough County, the county board voted 10-7 favorably. It’s now in the hands of the IDOA. We expect a favorable vote for the Hancock County operation, as well.”

A group of citizens identifying themselves as Saving Our Rural Environment (SORE) has been petitioning the Hancock County board to deny the Junction Acres hog confinement proposal. Angela Markey of SORE told news sources the group’s concerns range from rural air quality to accidental manure discharges. She pointed out a Hancock County resident with emphysema and lung cancer resides 2,850 feet from the proposed operation.

“We’re small farmers and we have livestock, so we’re not anti-livestock. But there’s a huge difference in what we do and factory farming,” Markey told the McDonough County Voice.

In a SORE press release dated Dec. 20, 2011, the group stated it was also concerned with the impact the facility would have on nearby spring-fed wells, groundwater depletion, property values and quality of life.

“In addition, the proposal is dangerously close to the LaMoine River, which can be impacted by polluted runoff,” the SORE statement read, in part.

SORE member Ken Hunderosse of LaHarpe told the Quincy Herald-Whig he already lives in close proximity to two hog confinement operations and fears a concentration of hog farms could threaten water supplies and the environment.

Hollis said though the SORE group’s membership apparently boasts only a small handful of families, PSM has reached out to the group to try and assuage some of their fears. “We met with them at the kitchen table. We think it is very unlikely that they will have an issue with the farm but yes, we have met with them,” he said. “We respect their concerns for water quality and air quality, and we explained how we address (those concerns).”

Hancock County Board Chair David Walker said he had no concerns about granting PSM’s request to bring a hog confinement operation to the county. “(PSM does) a professional job with these things. I trust them,” he said. “Other farms not managed by PSM give other hog farms a bad name.”

Independent family farmers increasingly are hiring PSM to oversee their operations in order to allow them to remain competitive with larger operations, among other reasons, according to Hollis.

“There are currently a total of 26 farm locations that we oversee. When our farmer clients hire us, they are trusting us to take care of their livestock and to educate their employees,” explained Hollis, who also operates Carthage Veterinary Service.

“(PSM’s) growth in the last 10 years has been with the producer who owns their own forage field, owns their own hog building and would like a steady supply of baby pigs to feed in their own home operations. That is what has stimulated our growth and what is behind the two operations we’re working with now.”

Not all residents are convinced of PSM’s ability to responsible manage Junction Acres, the Voice reported. “I have the same concerns that have been voiced to the county board by others who live near CAFOs (confined animal feeding operations). Odors, damage to country roads and there’s a great deal of concern about property values declining,” said Stephen Evans, who resides near the proposed Junction Acres site and near another, existing hog confinement operation.

In addition to the two proposed hog operations, the region is home to several other planned or expanding hog farms. Pending an IDOA construction permit, another site is planned in McDonough County by Shamrock Acres. Silver Creek Pig, located outside of Blandinsville, has been approved for a 600-head expansion, according to IDOA records.

PSM will manage a 3,500-head facility under construction near St. Mary in Hancock County, in addition to another operation planned for the Fountain Green area of Hancock County, which was recently issued an IDOA construction permit.