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Wright County holds multiple public hearings on confinement‑site expansions and manure management
Summary
At consecutive hearings the Wright County Board of Supervisors reviewed matrix scores and manure management plans for three confinement‑site proposals (Buffalo site, Lake Township, Huntley Farm). Officials and consultants described capacity changes, new irrigation application technology, and next steps for local review.
The Wright County Board of Supervisors opened and closed public hearings on proposed livestock confinement expansions affecting Vernon Township, Lake Township and Boone Township, hearing technical details and raising site‑specific concerns.
Consultant Krauss of Pinnacle Group, Iowa Falls, told the board the Huntley Farm site (Boone Township, section 14) was built as a roughly 4,400‑head facility and the proposal would increase stocking density by about 400 head. Krauss said the operation’s new manure management plan would produce roughly 1.5 million gallons annually and that the operation has spreading acreage and irrigation capacity well in excess of that amount. "They have the ability to utilize low‑pressure irrigation during the summertime with what we call a rain reel irrigation system," Krauss said, describing the system as a high‑clearance, hose‑reel applicator that applies diluted manure at low pressure into the crop root zone.
At the Buffalo site public hearing in Vernon Township the applicant proposed a site containing up to 4,999 head in two buildings; staff reported matrix figures (495 reported; 440 is the passing threshold) and noted a nearby existing site approximately 2,667 feet away. County staff and supervisors flagged the proximity to an open ditch leading toward the Iowa River and said they would review that water‑distance mapping and schedule additional public review as needed.
For the Lake Township (Smithfield) matrix review staff said the change stems from Smithfield’s revised stocking requirements rather than new construction; the matrix score was reported at 480 (minimum passing score 440) and the revised manure management plan was expected to produce just under 1.5 million gallons annually.
Board members and staff asked technical follow‑up questions about acreage and manure‑spreading plans for the Buffalo site; the applicant reported 400 acres listed in the manure management plan (with two fields in Hamilton County and others in Vernon Township) and a storage capacity figure of roughly 2.1 million gallons, with a projection that the site would produce about 1.3 million gallons. Staff said the Department of Natural Resources submitted revised water maps that did not change the previously computed matrix score.
No members of the public offered comments during the hearings. Supervisors closed the hearings and directed staff to return the items for formal consideration at a future meeting (board staff indicated the Buffalo site matter would be back on the agenda the following week). The board did not take final approval votes on any of these permits during this meeting.
