Neighbors support hog operation in Jasper County

A crowd of around 40 people attended the Jasper County Board of Supervisorsmeeting this morning to show support for a hog confinement operation outsideof Mitchelville. A group opposed to Tim Van Wyk’s operation says it iscausing high levels of nitrates in the Walnut and Camp Creek watersheds.Supporters today said the high nitrate levels could be due to a nearbylandfill or fertilizer applied to farm fields. Van Wyke invited thesupervisors to tour his 38-hundred head operation.Prairie City farmer Mark Wiggins presented the board with a petition insupport of all aspects of agriculture in Iowa. Wiggins says the state istrying to lure other businesses into the state and should do the same foragriculture.The supervisors voted to send a letter to the Iowa Department of NaturalResources asking them to study how the manure runoff might impact the twowatersheds.