A proposed hog confinement in Greene County was recently denied by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.

DNR Environmental Engineer Cindy Garza says following a public hearing on May 11th for a new hog confinement in Highland Township for Todd Stumpf, several concerns were filed from the Greene County Board of Supervisors from residents and one was about running water in a grass waterway on a parcel of land northwest of the proposed site. Following May 11th’s public hearing, the Supervisors voted 4-1 in favor of the confinement, with Vice-Chair Dawn Rudolph voting against. 

Garza tells Raccoon Valley Radio because the waterway was within the master matrix minimum distance separation, the DNR Field Office in Mason City inspected the area and noted that repairs were needed. Stumpf was then contacted about addressing the repairs before a draft permit could be issued. Garza says after 45 days of when the notification was sent to Stumpf, she did not receive any correspondence from him, the hog confinement application was returned. She notes that Stumpf can reapply in the future.