Menu
Log in


Buffalo River Watershed Alliance

Log in

Testing the waters State plans more study of farm, impact on Buffalo By NWA Democrat-Gazette

06 Jul 2016 8:10 AM | Anonymous member (Administrator)

NWA editorial: Testing the waters

State plans more study of farm, impact on Buffalo

By NWA Democrat-Gazette

Posted: July 6, 2016 at 1 a.m.


The canoeists angled for the bank as soon as they'd emerged from the fast-moving waters. Unlike some of the earlier adventures through the river's quicker-paced but shallow flows, this section held no threat form the unpleasantness of small, barely submerged rocks making that awful noise as it scraped along the vessel's hull.

No, this boat-bobbling experience was caused by deeper and bigger boulders churning the quickening waters. Reaching the bank, the paddlers glanced back, quickly convinced the rest of their crew would also recognize the potential for refreshing excitement in this stretch of the Buffalo River. It was time for another break in a three-day journey downstream to the take-out at the old zinc-mining town of Rush.


What’s the point?

Further study of the threat of contamination from a hog farm near a tributary of the Buffalo River is vital to river’s long-term care.


Before long, young and old(er) alike stretched their legs forward, buoyed by their life jackets in the cool, clear water. Positioned as if they reclined in a liquid La-Z-Boy, each adventurer cascaded downstream by the power of water, slow enough to maintain some control but fast enough to inspire delighted smiles in both the youngsters and the old goats.

A roller coaster would be faster, but no more exhilarating than this moment in a true Arkansas natural, and national, treasure.

Experiences like these are what inspire Arkansans' love affair with this beauty of a river as it flows more than 150 miles through the Ozarks toward the White River. They're also what under-gird concern over its future, intensified by the establishment more than three years ago of a large hog farm near a tributary that feeds into the Buffalo.

The Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality issued a permit to C&H Hog Farms through a process that has, ever since, been criticized for its lack of transparency amid critics' questions about the damage hog waste would have on the river. No evidence, according to state-hired scientists, shows the large-scale hog operation is causing any pollution, but for many Arkansans the question is "why risk it?"

If the argument is really one of Save the Buffalo vs. save the hogs, we know which side most Arkansans are likely to take. But the argument isn't so clear cut as advocates for the river might like to suggest. Backers of C&H have questioned whether scientific arguments by opponents are skewed by emotion, while anti-hog farm activists raise questions of whether state-hired scientists are biased.

Even as they clash, those groups appeared to welcome the recent announcement by the Department of Environmental Quality that the agency will commission a study of clay liners the farm's hog manure storage ponds. Opponents of the farm have expressed concern the ponds are leaking.

C&H ownership, apparently confident in its operations, has given the state agency permission to enter into a contract with an independent research team. Cost of the study is expected to be $20,000 to $30,000. Becky Keogh, director of the agency, promised an "open and transparent manner" of research to supplement existing research.

All Arkansans who appreciate our Natural State should be watching to see what future findings show. As much as we respect the private property rights of every Arkansan, the Buffalo is the nation's first national river and it draws nearly million visitors a year. That accounts for millions of dollars in tourist spending that supports 750 jobs.

Arkansas cannot afford to risk environmental damage to the Buffalo National River. But the hog farm's operation cannot be shuttered based on fear. It's got to be based on facts. We welcome new research to help establish facts about how well the hog farm operators are containing waste from the hog-raising operation.

And whatever protections are necessary to protect the Buffalo River should be given top priority by Gov. Asa Hutchinson's administration. Surely no governor wants to go down in history as the one who lost the Buffalo.

Commentary on 07/06/2016

Buffalo River Watershed Alliance is a non profit 501(c)(3) organization

Copyright @ 2019


Powered by Wild Apricot Membership Software