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Article published: Apr 11, 2006
Poultry bill still splits legislators
Proposal would clamp down on rules established by counties

A bill that would impose uniformity on regulations of poultry houses should head to the South Carolina House of Representatives this week, though it appears the bill, intended to prevent counties from enacting regulations stricter than the state's, would actually tighten up Sumter County's less stringent regulations.

The bill passed second reading in the state Senate last week. State Sen. John Land, D-Manning, is one of the co-sponsors of the bill, while state Sen. Phil Leventis, D-Sumter, was one of 10 senators to vote against it.

The bill has changed a great deal since it was first introduced. It originally pre-empted all local regulatory plans; a new paragraph specifies that counties still have zoning power but doesn't allow a county to impose regulations within a zoning that differ from the state's.

City-County Planning Director Bill Hoge said Sumter currently requires only a 50-foot setback from the property line for poultry houses, but requires them to be at least 1,000 feet from a neighboring residential use.

The state Department of Health and Environmental Control, he said, also requires a 1,000-foot setback from neighboring residential uses but, in addition, requires a 400-foot setback from property lines.

Other counties, he said, have enacted setbacks of 2,500 feet or more from property lines. It would take 574 acres to be able to measure 2,500 feet out in four directions from a single point.

The bill also now allows DHEC to require extra setbacks in individual cases, if needed, and requires a vegetative buffer between poultry houses and residences.

Despite the amendments, Leventis said he continues to oppose the bill, which he said isn't truly about farming.

"We're solving a problem I'm not sure absolutely exists," Leventis said.

"The basic idea of grabbing all the authority and putting it in Columbia with no local input is just a bad idea and it's a bad precedent. ... It's perfectly frightening," he said.

With this precedent, he said, Columbia could decide to impose statewide requirements for industrial, commercial or residential zoning.

Georgetown isn't the same as Greer, and they shouldn't be required to follow identical land-use regulations formulated in Columbia, he said.

Agribusiness does face challenges, Leventis said, and he doesn't agree with some counties that have made it virtually impossible for poultry producers to do business. But, he added, poultry producers should be attempting to work out differences with local government, not heading to Columbia.

Dennis Gordon, the South Carolina Division Manager for Gold Kist, said industry representatives have spoken to local governments, to no avail.

Gold Kist needs another 110 houses, he said. Some would replacements for outdated houses, and others are needed to expand the business.

The problem doesn't exist in Sumter, he said, but in some nearby counties that have imposed stricter regulations.

Gold Kist can't move too far afield from its Sumter processing plant, said Wayne Lord, vice president of corporate communications, because there's about a 60-mile maximum distance that chickens can travel from farm to plant.

Nor does the company want to abandon its existing farmers, Lord said.

South Carolina's regulations are already the most stringent in the Southeast, Lord said. The company is prepared to work within those regulations, he said, but shouldn't have to deal with county councils acting as local DHECs.

State Rep. Murrell Smith, R-Sumter, hasn't studied the amendments to the bill but said overall he supports it. He understands the arguments for home rule, he said, but feels they're outweighed in this instance by agribusiness' needs, especially as Gold Kist is one of Sumter's largest employers.

"We've got to have some statewide regulations on agriculture or certain counties say, 'We don't want agriculture here anymore, we're just going to pass ordinances to prevent it,'" he said.

Zoning is a county function, Smith said, but counties can't be allowed to run rampant and push businesses out of South Carolina. Further, he said, he hasn't heard from anyone in local government here complaining that the bill threatens home rule.

Proponents have pointed out that farms and farming acreage are on the decline in South Carolina. There were fewer farms in 2002 than 1997, and about 128,215 fewer acres devoted to farming, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Poultry production, however, is up. The USDA reported 162 million broilers produced in South Carolina in 1995 and 205.5 million produced in 2004Turkey production went up from 6.1 million in 1995 to 12 million in 2004, according to USDA.

Contact Staff Writer Leslie Cantu at lesliec@theitem.com or 803-774-1250.