Buffalo River Watershed Alliance
Who is protecting us
Hog wash!
You may ask, "Why hasn't the U of A Division of Agriculture's Big Creek Research Extension Team reported or confirmed that hog-waste cesspools are leaking at C&H Hog Farms?"
Like me, maybe you thought they're there to safeguard the Buffalo National River, or that they are there monitoring the runoff and groundwater for the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality.
The published mission statement of the Big Creek team is "demonstrating and monitoring the sustainable management of nutrients on C&H Farm in Big Creek Watershed."
The mission statement of the Division of Agriculture mentions that it is to "ensure a safe, nutritious food supply," and ends with "and strengthen Arkansas families."
But our Department of Environmental Quality proclaims, "We protect, enhance and restore the natural environment for the well-being of all Arkansans."
So only the Department of Environmental Quality is protecting us neighbors. How is that working out for you?
Don't feel safe? You think Governor Hutchinson will come to the rescue? Why do you think so?
DUANE WOLTJEN
Save the Buffalo River
Praise for Mike Masterson! Let him continue writing about the Buffalo River and possibly save it from ruin by a truly stinking corporation. The public should wake up and smell the pig feces and its owners.
BILL THURMAN
Complacency in state
It is clear to me that nobody who has the power to do anything wants to take responsibility for the pollution threatening the Buffalo National River by the C&H hog facility in Newton County. The state Department of Environmental Quality, the governor, and the EPA regional office have been unresponsive to any scientific knowledge that this facility was ill-placed on karst topography or that recent imaging has raised alarm that large amounts of hog waste is likely present under the lagoons. It seems this fact was actually omitted in pertinent published reports by the team from the University of Arkansas tasked with using our tax money to monitor the river's pollution from the hog facility.
It is difficult to ascertain what its mission really is. Perhaps the mission statement has changed. It appears that its findings do not accurately reflect the entirety of the environmental impact that the thousands of gallons of untreated hog waste have on the Buffalo National River.
Perhaps we are getting too complacent about how our tax dollars are used in Arkansas.
PATTI KENT
Issue will not go away
Perhaps if you tell your readers to Google "Buffalo River hog farm protest" they will see why there is a big stink on the Buffalo. This is an issue that will not go away.
JOE GOLDEN
Harrison
Lovely County Citizen
Letter to Editor
Hogwash!
Every day we see vehicles laden with canoes and kayaks destined for the Buffalo River. They spend time (and money) in Eureka Springs because of the loveliness of this place and we're on the way to the loveliness of that.
So to think it's OK to build hog factories in the watershed of the Buffalo River viewed from the standpoint of our local tourist economy would be raw stupidity of the first order. The National Park Service statistics indicate that 1.6 million guests visit the Buffalo National River each year, contributing over $62 million to the local economy. How much of that money is actually spent in Eureka Springs is hard to measure, but when looking at the bottom line, to lose any amount of money from our local economy simply because the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) feels it's OK to allow a hog factory on a major tributary of the Buffalo National River is dead wrong.
One thing that we learned from our Save the Ozarks experience is that bureaucratic agencies and the corporations they are supposed to regulate are cozy with each other like they wake up in the same bed. And bureaucrats in one agency, whether state or federal, are extremely hesitant to interfere with the decisions made by other agencies' bureaucrats unless they are challenged by the people to do so.
The Citizen's Guide to the National Environmental Policy Act insists that governmental agencies are empowered to enforce the law, and stand up for citizens' rights to such things as clean water, when the people stand up and take action in protection of their own rights.
Last week, I called the governor's office to ask them to close the hog farm. I was shuffled off to the voicemail of the man in charge of veterans affairs who then did not return my call. But I'll try again, and I hope you will, too. The phone number for Governor Asa Hutchinson's office is: (501) 682-2345 -- Doug Stowe
Power Line, Hog Farm Similar
About three years ago, AEP/SWEPCO attempted to get regulatory approval to build a massive extra-high-voltage power line through the National Military Park at Pea Ridge, along the White River in Carroll County and through the outskirts of Eureka Springs. The proposal brought a huge outpouring of opposition, and the unfortunate proposal was ultimately withdrawn by the power company after local activists in Eureka Springs, banning together as "Save the Ozarks," proved it wasn't needed in the first place.
That power line would have permanently bisected two portions of the national battlefield and would have damaged that tourist treasure. It also would have slashed an ugly scar across the beautiful landscape of Eureka Springs, one of our state's most valued tourist resources.
There are interesting parallels between the struggles to stop the continued pollution of the Buffalo National River by the notorious C&H Hog Farms, and the efforts that successfully stopped the almost equally notorious SWEPCO power line, one thoughtlessly proposed route of which would have passed in clear view of Thorncrown Chapel, one of the world's most valued architectural treasures.
First of all, both proposals, the hog factory and the power line, were put forth in a thoughtless and irresponsible manner. Secondly, both the power line and hog factory offered direct damages to properties owned by the National Park Service. The National Park Service in both cases expressed strong opposition in the form of letters written to state regulatory agencies, and in both cases received no direct response. The letters from the National Park Service are too compelling to ignore and offer direct scientific evidence of damage to water quality in the park.
I have been (privately) assured that the National Park Service and the state Department of Environmental Quality are meeting privately about coming to some form of resolution of the issue, and it is my sincere hope that "resolution" involves the immediate removal of the hog factory from the tributary waters of the Buffalo National River.
The Clean Water Act and the National Environmental Policy Act are both threatened by failure of enforcement of prudent regulations in this case.
According to the Environmental Policy Act guide for citizen involvement, the only way governmental agencies are given the strength to protect public interest is when the public is involved. Save the Ozarks learned that lesson the hard way, by having to raise $150,000 in legal fees and fighting the power line relentlessly on every front. Nearly every citizen in Eureka Springs was involved in some way to make our community's point known.
What is called for in this situation is that we all make our support for the preservation of the Buffalo River National Park clear. Some may care about free-flowing streams in which visitors may safely bathe and partake of the splendors of the "Natural State." Let your concerns lead you to action, please.
Others may be concerned about the loss of economic value. The hog factory may offer some small benefit to the economy of Arkansas. But how can its small impact measure up to the $62 million spent here in the Natural State by the 1.5 million annual visitors to the Buffalo River National Park? Pollution from the hog factory placed in the watershed of our nation's first national river puts the entire tourist economy at risk, even here in the very northwest corner of the state.
Again, let your concerns lead you to act.
I am not asking for anything unreasonable in asking for the hog factory to be closed and removed.
The hog factory is very likely in violation of the Clean Water Act. Research has proven it imperils one of the primary tributaries of the Buffalo River through runoff from manure application fields. Strong evidence from dye-tracing leads researchers to believe ongoing groundwater contamination from the storage lagoons and field application of manure leads to the Buffalo River.
Please call Gov. Asa Hutchinson's office and demand that the hog factory be relocated far, far from the natural state.
------------v------------
Doug Stowe is vice president of Save the Ozarks. In 2009 he was named an Arkansas Living Treasure by the Arkansas Department of Heritage and the Arkansas Arts Council.
Editorial on 06/04/2016
http://www.arkansasonline.com
The Arkansas Pollution Control and Ecology Commission in three weeks will hear the Big Creek Research and Extension Team attempt to rationalize why it feels no need to verify whether the wet substance discovered by electrical resistivity studies directly beneath a swine waste lagoon at C&H Hog Farms is indeed raw waste leaking through a major fracture into the groundwater.
It's inconceivable that the Big Creek team (the governor-appointed, tax-funded University of Arkansas Agriculture Division group responsible for ensuring this factory isn't leaking waste into our Buffalo National River watershed) doesn't insist on drilling a well to verify the studies that documented the plumes of highly suspicious material beneath the lagoon.
Has denial become a preferred scientific approach for watchdogs?
The commission meeting is scheduled for June 24 at the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality (cough) headquarters in Little Rock. You might want to attend. Geologist Todd Halihan of Oklahoma State University discovered what appears to be leaking and a significant fracture directly beneath one of two raw waste lagoons in March 2015. However, both the state agency and the commission responsible for environmental protection supposedly knew nothing of his findings until the Buffalo River Watershed Alliance disclosed them during a commission meeting last month.
Arkansans wonder why no one except the team knew of the findings. In October, Tim Kresse, a veteran water quality specialist with the U.S. Geological Survey and Big Creek team member, sent an email to Andrew Sharpley, the team leader, saying: "I did chat with Todd ... some about the pond results ... In short, it would be nice to put a well on the west side in the vicinity of where Todd believed he saw a major fracture and movement of waste. This could be critical to resolving the interpretation of the resistivity data. Todd would be willing to assist on getting the drilling done for free. I just don't know how the amount of grief or worry this would cause in lieu of all the activity at the farm, but again I believe it is a critical component. Todd is fairly confident of his interpretation. Thoughts?"
My thoughts: Lots of taxpaying Arkansans are rightfully curious and worried over what's beneath the lagoon.
June 1, 2016
29
We feel sympathy for Gov. Asa Hutchinson whose private office next to the Governor’s Mansion has suffered a rat infestation so bad the governor is unable to use the office. Major renovations removing walls, beams and insulation are necessary. A reporter who visited recently said although the rats have been killed, rat urine can still be smelled in the governor’s private office.
Governor, we understand you not wanting to work in an office that stinks of rat urine, but how about waking up to the smell of pig poop if you live near the C&H hog factory located near the Buffalo National River? Despite a major public outcry, including many citizens writing to the governor and the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality, and despite costly citizen-funded legal challenges, the state has failed to protect the people and environment in the vicinity of the 6,500-head hog factory. In fact, the research group receiving state tax money that is supposed to be evaluating the impacts of the hog factory is so dominated by Big Ag interests that it has refused to allow drilling underneath the hog waste lagoons even with scientific evidence suggesting that the lagoons are leaking waste.
The governor gets major credit for being one of the very few Red State Republicans who has been successful helping low-income people have access to health insurance coverage through an expansion of the state’s Medicaid program. Hutchinson deserves credit for calling a special session and using a unique legislative strategy to preserve not just health care coverage, but a huge positive impact on the state budget and the health of the state’s hospitals and other healthcare providers.
Parallels can be drawn between the success keeping the Medicaid expansion and the battle against the hog factory near the Buffalo. It made no fiscal sense to turn down $1 billion per year in federal money for the Medicaid expansion. And it makes no fiscal sense to allow one hog factory that employs only seven people to endanger the top outdoor recreational area in the Natural State responsible for 900 jobs, an estimated 1.4 million visitors per year and an economic impact of $57 million.
While the governor gets the rats under control in his private office next to the mansion, how about thinking about those in Northwest Arkansas who have to breathe in sickening fumes from the C&H hog factory? When it comes to protecting other’s from animal wastes, the governor and the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality have been missing in action.
If you think rat urine stinks, try hog waste. Imagine not being able to open your windows or work outdoor because the smell turns your stomach. Or being unable to visit the cemetery where your ancestors are buried because the air is so foul. Or human and animal illnesses that weren’t a problem before the hog factory surfacing causing great concern. Those are just some of the impacts believed to be linked to dumping millions of gallons of untreated hog waste in a karst area where the ground is riddled with holes that allow for quick transport of surface wastes to underground water supplies.
Recently, musicians from Still on the Hill, Kelly and Donna Mulhollan, who are doing a CD on the Buffalo National River, were hiking to the popular Sam’s Throne overlook. But what was the awful smell? It was the unmistakable stench of hog waste.
Like with the Medicaid expansion, it is ridiculous to put the area’s jobs and tourism economy at risk because of one hog factory that employs only seven people. And since Arkansas ponied up more than $125 million in incentives for the Big River steel mill (or the Big River steal, as some are calling it) that now appears doomed to failure because of a worldwide glut of steel and low prices, how about just buying out C&H and shutting it down? It would cost a pittance of what the state has invested in Big River steal.
Governor, good luck with kicking the rats out of your private office. Now how about killing some “rats” in Northwest Arkansas by protecting the people and tourism economy of Northwest Arkansas by putting pressure on the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality to shut down a hog factory permitted without public notice in violation of regulatory laws.
Becky Gillette – As evidence of environmental contamination leading to human and animal health problems mounts, local opponents of the C&H 6,500-head hog factory in the Buffalo National River (BNR) watershed are fed up with the failure of state and federal regulatory agencies, and Gov. Asa Hutchinson, to act to protect people, animals and $57-million in annual tourism revenues from pathogens contained in hog waste in lagoons and spray fields.
On May 26 the Buffalo River Watershed Alliance (BRWA), the National Parks Conservation Association and other allies held a meeting in Eureka Springs to report on the increasing evidence about how the hog factory that employs only seven people is threatening the health of wildlife, area residents and the 1.4 million annual visitors to the BNR.
Geologist Dr. Van Brahana, who heads up a non-profit research project to access and document the water quality impacts of the hog factory, said studies have shown that groundwater in the area can move a 1,000 ft. or more per day. The flow is fast, contamination is easy and the flow direction is difficult to predict.
BRWA and other allies challenged an environmental assessment by federal agencies that found no significant environmental impacts from the facility. The feds approved loan guarantees for the hog factory that produces as much waste as a city of 35,000 people. BRWA and its allies challenged the EA, and a federal judge required the agencies to review that assessment. In that review, the agencies found that, “There is no evidence of karst.” Brahana showed photos of the caves, sinkholes, rock formations and mapping that clearly prove the area is riddled with Swiss cheese-like rock formations that are distinct characteristics of karst.
Opponents find it shocking the federal agencies could deny a known fact that the area’s geology easily allows ground contamination to impact underground water supplies that can surface later in the Buffalo National River and its tributaries. The waste could expose birds, fish and humans to dangerous levels of e. coli bacteria and spread nutrient pollution that can lead to oxygen deprivation, algae blooms, fish kills and other problems related to degraded water quality.
Brahana said concerns about health of animals and humans is increasing.
“There are multiple cases of illnesses,” Brahana said. “But all our work is for naught. They are ignoring us. What the heck is going on? Politics has run amok. We have had a huge blowback from big ag. The Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality is not doing its job. It is up to us to do something about it. Getting rich by contaminating your neighbor’s environment needs to quit.”
Dane Schumacher, legal chair of the BRWA board of directors, said opponents have been disappointed that numerous letters and petitions to the governor, ADEQ, lawsuits, and major public advocacy campaigns have not been successful in stopping the hog waste problems.
“We are parked now,” Schumacher said. “We have tried every option to get ADEQ to respond.”
There is also now growing concerns that electric resistivity studies have indicated there may be significant fracture and leakage underneath hog waste lagoons in the area. But a state-funded research group dominated by pro big agriculture representatives has refused to drill underneath the lagoons to assess if they are leaking. The BRWA opposes installation of liners for the lagoons until drilling is done.
While the primary concern is water contamination, air pollution is also a significant factor, Brahana said. Hog waste can be smelled for miles away, which also impacts the experience of visitors to the area.
Schumacher said concerns are growing because the C&H hog factory is now in the process of applying for an EPA Region 5 permit that, if approved, would be permanent. The factory is also applying to extensively increase the number of acres where hog waste can be sprayed.
Members of the audience, some of whom were visibly angry and outraged at the degradation of what they consider a national treasure, questioned what else could be done since the “playing nice” strategies so far have failed to bear fruit.
“We are looking at every possible avenue,” Schumacher said, indicating the civil nuisance lawsuits are underway by people who believe their health and property values have been harmed by the hog waste.
Pat Costner, a retired Greenpeace scientist, said that not just area residents, but the health and welfareof all visitors to the BNR are threatened by hog waste.
“I think the BRWA and the other organizations focusing on protecting the Buffalo have done an outstanding job giving this issue a high profile,” Costner said. “They have had excellent legal strategies. But it is also clear that neither ADEQ nor the governor’s office nor the regional EPA office have been responsible or responsive. It was obvious there were breaches of regulations by ADEQ, and the governor and the EPA regional office are next line to be called out.”
Costner and others said nothing short of a massive public protest could right the situation. Occupying the state capital was discussed.
Dr. Luis Contreras expressed frustration at the lack of progress, and said efforts should be focused on getting people to stop eating pork. Others spoke of a campaign to get Wal-Mart to stop selling factory-produced pork. But another member of the audience questioned how boycotting pork would work when the U.S. is exporting a lot of pork to China.
Earlier the BRWA had a letter writing campaign to the big multinational company that was under contract to purchase pork from C&H. But Schumacher said the facility is no longer under Cargill, and is now owned by a Brazilian company.
To take action including opposing the facility new permit application, Schumacher directed people to the website for the BRNA http://www.buffaloriveralliance.org/
Arkansasonline
On the hog factory Opinions differ By Mike Masterson It's become apparent in light of two editorials published by the newspaper that a number of my valued readers are confused by the difference in tone and approach between what I express in my column and the newspaper's opinions about coverage of the controversial C&H Hog Farms in Mount Judea. The confusion is understandable considering how until a few years ago, I was writing my column while also serving as the editorial page editor of the paper's Northwest edition. My columns about the factory over two-plus years have addressed numerous public concerns over what some experts predict will be the inevitable contamination of the Buffalo National River, the first stream to be so designated in America. My position on enormous amounts of hog waste likely polluting this treasured river has been (like other matters I'm passionate about) beyond obvious. They differ dramatically with the opinions of the editorial writers who, in editorials published on May 5 and May 18, referred to sustained coverage of developments involving the hog factory with 6,500 swine as "the state's longest-running bore," and "we're sick and tired of the whole subject, distraction and sideshow. Enough! Who needs it?" My opinion: As a lifelong journalist, my bent always has been to keep a light intently focused on issues of significant public concern, particularly where government actions and inactions deserve to be questioned and fully scrutinized. Many unanswered questions and unrevealed truths certainly remain here. My point today is for readers to simply be aware that my approach and interests in protecting our only precious national river (that attracts some 56 million tourist dollars annually) obviously differs significantly from that of the paper's editorial writers. The way this factory has so obviously been mishandled by our state agencies and those in power will continue, to me, to be a significant national story by any standard and well-deserving of continued in-depth reporting and commentary. I've certainly never seen the subject as boring or a distracting sideshow. I'd appreciate knowing how you feel about this subject since you're the ones who subscribe and purchase the newspaper. Are you bored with the matter? Here's a smattering of recent letters I've received from readers statewide who clearly aren't: Former GOP congressman Ed Bethune writes: "C&H and Big Creek Research are doing everything they can to prevent a scientific finding the ponds have leaked. In light of how they've positioned themselves, an adverse finding would be devastating. It would undercut all the soothing assurances they have given to the public. This is why they're resisting. Intentionally, I think. At a minimum they are guilty of 'indifference.'" Vic writes: "Has anyone considered the amount of rainwater that runs into the lagoons? Many extra gallons of wastewater over the last three years ... Imagine the mess trying to clean out the lagoons to put in a plastic liner. Where would they take the sludge? Where would they put the daily output of waste while they are doing the liner? If they line the ponds they would have a lot more waste to spray. They are running out of places to put it...This thing could end up being a superfund site." Rick writes: "Your articles have been a topic of conversation at my local beer joint for years from all the articles you wrote about Janie Ward and now the hog factory. We all are in agreement there is a lot more stink than the hog waste ... We want you to keep writing and don't give up until something's done ... Don't give up, more people are behind you than you probably realize." Roger writes: "I'm a longtime reader of your columns. Thanks for your efforts on behalf of preserving the Buffalo and ... having the literary courage to speak frankly about sensitive issues. I'm old enough to remember how difficult it was to save the Buffalo River the first time around." Jerry writes: "I hardly ever agree with you politically. But what a pleasure to have a conservative conservationist on the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Your active participation in exposing this to the public makes you a champion of the people and state ... Enjoyed the column "Findings raise questions" immensely ... It cannot and should not be swept under the table." Karl writes regarding the Big Creek Research and Extension Team saying it doesn't need to drill beneath the waste lagoons at C&H: "Obviously, what one doesn't admit or determine exists one also can deny responsibility for correcting. Keep facts at a distance and shout, 'We didn't know!' Then continue to ignore the imminent damage, so as not to gore the oxen of the moneyed class. It's plain as the nose on their faces." Marti writes: "Thank you for continuing to bring the C&H CAFO issue to light ... Much (most) of the coverage is pro Farm Bureau and Pork Producers lobbying interests. They must have some pretty slick PR people." ------------v------------ Mike Masterson's column appears regularly in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Email him at mmasterson@arkansasonline.com. Editorial on 05/31/2016
NWAonline
Lacks understanding
As evidenced by two recent editorials in the Democrat-Gazette, it appears that the editorial writers lack understanding of the issues and of the Buffalo River's importance to the state of Arkansas.
The first editorial seemed to imply that, with the decision to do away with the general permit, there would be no more hog concentrated feeding operations in Arkansas. But it appears operators can apply for an individual permit to operate under Regulation 5. Therefore, if the five-year moratorium should be lifted in the Buffalo River watershed, more operations of this nature could proliferate.
The second editorial stated they were sick of this hog-factory issue. Really?
Besides being the aesthetic crown jewel of Arkansas, the Buffalo River in 2015 generated $56.6 million in visitor spending. Tourism-related jobs total over 900 in the area. That is the kind of economic plus needed.
Recently the state of Arkansas produced All About Arkansas, a book serving as promotional material to attract businesses to our Natural State. Guess what figures in it? The Buffalo River, of course.
It is my hope that those who have the good sense to speak out for what they know is precious shall continue to work for the protections that the Buffalo River deserves.
It is also my hope that the Democrat-Gazette will provide balanced and in-depth hard-news reporting on this issue. The readership expects no less.
GINNY MASULLO
Fayetteville
By Emily Walkenhorst
Posted: May 27, 2016 at 2:38 a.m. Updated: May 27, 2016 at 2:38 a.m.
The department approved C&H Hog Farms' application to install synthetic liners above the clay bottoms that hold the hog manure at the two manure ponds on the facility in Newton County. Messages concerning questions about the department's role in installing the liners going forward -- or whether it had one at all -- went unanswered by the department Thursday.
C&H owners have applied to conduct numerous activities on the farm site, including installing the liners, to assuage concerns of those who oppose the presence of the facility and its large volume of hog manure in the river's watershed, which is the area around the river in which water and sediment may run into the river.
But none of the proposals has satisfied several groups that have organized in opposition to the only large concentrated animal feeding operation in the watershed.
During the Pollution Control and Ecology Commission meeting Thursday at the department's headquarters in North Little Rock, Heber Springs attorney Richard Mays, on behalf of the Buffalo River Watershed Alliance, asked the department not to install the liners yet at the facility. Mays said doing so would be "premature and foolish" until research is done to find out whether the ponds are polluting.
Commissioner Wesley Stites, a biochemistry professor and chairman of the chemistry and biochemistry department at the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville, said he didn't follow the logic of the request, summarizing it as "there might be a leak, and we don't want you to put in a liner that might stop the leak."
"So you're concerned about the leak, but you're not concerned about the leaking occurring during the investigation?" Stites said. "I don't understand this at all."
Mays said the group was concerned about any leaks occurring at C&H but that installation of the liners and the accompanying transfer of hog manure could exacerbate any existing issues at the facility.
The Buffalo River Watershed Alliance, along with three other groups that make up the Buffalo River Coalition, has asked the department to halt operations at C&H until more research can be conducted at the site.
The Big Creek Research and Extension Team, which operates out of the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture and is monitoring C&H's impact on its environment for five years, has declined to dodrilling requested by those who oppose the C&H farm. The team will tentatively discuss the issue before the Pollution Control and Ecology Commission next month.
The Coalition wants the department and the Big Creek Research and Extension Team to conduct drilling near the manure ponds to determine if the ponds are leaking. The groups requested the drilling after data taken under the holding ponds during a separate research project on the farm's fields where hog manure is applied as fertilizer showed what one researcher said was higher-than-expected moisture. That researcher, Todd Halihan, a professor of hydrogeophysics and hydrogeology of fractured and karstic aquifers at Oklahoma State University, said drilling into the ground could find what is causing the test results. He also said installing liners would address the issue.
Opponents of C&H have raised questions previously about how the department would go about installing liners in the already-filled ponds, but are concerned that their pleas for additional research near the ponds will go unheeded if the liners are installed.
"Our concern is that if they do install those liners before they do the drilling, then they're just going to say the drilling isn't necessary," Buffalo River Watershed Alliance President Gordon Watkins said after the meeting.
Watkins said if the facility has been leaking hog manure into the ground, that would constitute a permit violation for which the facility should be punished. Installing liners without drilling could mean that any pollution that may have occurred would go unaccounted for, he said.
Metro on 05/27/2016
Buffalo River Currents
CONWAY, Ark. (May 26, 2016) – A dozen Hendrix College students recently spent a week examining the Buffalo National River on an interdisciplinary Odyssey experience that included oral history collection, creative reflection, hiking, and floating, along with more traditional academic work.
The students, who received Odyssey credit in the Special Projects category, were accompanied by Hendrix faculty, including politics professor Dr. Jay Barth, history professor Dr. Jonathan Hancock, and creative writing professor and Hendrix-Murphy Foundation Director Hope Coulter.
The “Buffalo River Currents” experience was underwritten by the Bill and Connie Bowen Odyssey Professorship, which Dr. Barth currently holds.
“This project examined the original battle that lead to the christening of the Buffalo as the first National River in 1972 through visits with key individuals involved in that long policy battle,” said Barth. “We then turned our focus to the current battle over the C&H hog farm near Mount Judea. We visited with one of the farm owners and with opponents to the project,” said Barth. “Students also carried out four oral interviews with locals to gain insight into the reactions to the farm and how it is impacting their responses to the River.”
"Getting to explore the debate around the C & H hog farm in Mount Judea was fascinating, both because we were able to really engage with both side's point of view and because we were able to get a sense of the unique sense of community in Newton County that is framing this debate," said Goodwin.
Hendrix biology professor Dr. George Harper discussed the natural history of the Buffalo region with students. Among the many activities were a panel discussion with University of Arkansas film professor and documentary filmmaker Larry Foley, geologist Dr. Walt Manger, ornithologist Dr. Kim Smith, and Ouachita Baptist University chemist Dr. Joe Nix; a program on oral history methods at the David and Barbara Pryor Center; a hike at Lost Valley led by former State Geologist for Arkansas John David McFarland; a meeting with Ellen Compton, daughter of environmentalist Neil Compton, University of Arkansas Special Collectionscurator Janet Parsch, and Ozark Society member and Hendrix alumnus Tom Perry ’72; a meeting with Buffalo Outdoor Center proprietor, environmental advocate, and Hendrix alumnus Mike Mills ’74; a birding hike with nature/travel writer and Hendrix alumnus Mel White ’72.
“In a week’s time, we learned about the geologic formations that make northern Arkansas unique, we identified a plethora of birds that are endemic to the region, and we investigated the political atmosphere in Newton county and the surrounding areas that have lent themselves to the formation of such a heated crisis like the one brought about by the C&H hog farms,” said Peterson. “I was fascinated by the intricate relationship between humans and the environment in the Buffalo River watershed and this trip provided me the ultimate microscopic look at the issue.”
“Talking to environmentalists, area residents, the hog farmers, and other experts in fields associated with the issues at hand, gave me a better understanding of just how multifaceted this issue is,” said Peterson. “The interdisciplinary nature of the trip allowed us to look at the history of the region and the fights for the buffalo in the past, work on public relation and technology skills as we interviewed area residents about their experiences with the issue, and also immersing ourselves in the literature relevant to our areas of study.”
“The Buffalo River Currents trip showed me the value of using an interdisciplinary lens when examining local or regional issues. I learned so much about writing, history, politics all while experiencing Arkansas history and nature,” said Zaidi. “It was an eye-opening trip because we had the opportunity to talk to people who are deeply connected to the Buffalo River region and Arkansas. Most of all, I’m so grateful to have fostered new relationships with peers and professors all while floating the Buffalo, birding, and hiking!”
About Hendrix College
Hendrix College is a private liberal arts college in Conway, Arkansas. Founded in 1876 and affiliated with the United Methodist Church since 1884, Hendrix is featured in Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think about Colleges and is nationally recognized in numerous college guides, lists, and rankings for academic quality, community, innovation, and value. For more information, visit www.hendrix.edu.
Buffalo River Watershed Alliance is a non profit 501(c)(3) organization
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