Amid calls for stricter setbacks and ongoing research of environmental bonds for hog producers, the Halifax County Planning Commission - with J.B. Elliott absent - unanimously voted Tuesday night to send their proposed ordinance recommendations for setbacks and regulations for confined animal feeding operations to the Board of Supervisors.
The proposed setbacks and regulations reflect the increases approved at the commissioners' last meeting, which included a maximum number of 5000 hogs at any one facility, a process for variance appeals and land application of liquid wastes no closer than 500 feet to an existing dwelling.
All livestock structures will be set back at least 2,500 ft. from platted residential subdivisions; residentially zone district; mobile home parks; public schools; hospitals; churches; county, town and community recreation areas; and public facilities, town corporate limits and the former corporate limits of the town of Clover and 1500 ft. from drinking water impoundments and wells.
Also any applicant for a confined animal feeding operation must supply a detailed history of employment, management or ownership of all prior confined animal feeding operations.
Supervisors may accept, modify or reject the commission's proposed ordinance revisions.
If accepted by the Board, citizens would again have the opportunity to address the issue during two public hearings, one by supervisors and one by the planning commission.
In addition to the Board of Supervisors, the commission's proposals will also be forwarded to the Halifax County Agriculture Development Committee.
Last June supervisors referred the issue to the planning commission and the agriculture committee for study. The planning commission's study resulted in increased setback proposals for the county but fell far short of protection sought by Southside Concerned Citizens (SCC), which called for setbacks reflecting those established by Mecklenburg County.
The motion to pass the revised ordinance on to supervisors followed presentations by speakers representing both SCC and the newly formed South Central Agriculturists For the Environment.
The action Tuesday also came with at least one major issue, an SCC backed call for an environmental bond for confined hog operations, unresolved.
Jerry Lovelace, assistant county administrator, had been asked by commissioners to investigate the cost of an environmental bond at the group's last work session.
Lovelace reported Tuesday night that he had contacted the Farm Bureau and Hite Insurance about estimates for a $1 million bond, a figure Lovelace said he proposed since commissioners had not specified an amount.
The assistant administrator said Hite responded that all three companies that the firm contacted declined to write such a bond and that the Farm Bureau advised the cost would probably be prohibitive for most operators if one were written.
Lovelace said he was told by a Farm Bureau representative that an operator would have to have $500,000 in "liquid assets" if they were to write such a bond.
Commissioner Jim Davis asked Lovelace to contact someone with Virginia International Raceway, which is currently locating in the southwest corner of Halifax County and in North Carolina, to see if they had had experience with such bonds.
During public comment commissioners heard from citizens associated with SCC and SAFE.
"This will be the most important decision you will have to make," said Lottie Nunn, a Virgilina resident who asked for setbacks equal to those adopted by Mecklenburg County.
One SCC member called on those with a conflict of interest in the matter to withdraw from action on the matter.
Virgilina area resident Jane Willis said she felt commissioners and supervisors had turned a blind eye and deaf ear to the citizens. She told the crowd that she and her husband had spent years building their home. Then one morning she learned from a newspaper headline that a confined hog operation was locating nearby.
"My quality of life will be forever changed. I will be the victim. Put yourselves in my place. Would you want one next to you?," she asked.
SCC chairman Jack Dunavant told the commission that the organization represents everyone who doesn't want one (a hog facility) next door.
He said SCC had proved hog odors cause illness and established that lagoons leak.
"DEQ has certified they did not think they could protect the health, safety and welfare of the people," said the chairman.
Dunavant said SCC members had "no financial interest" in the issue whatsoever and told the audience that the confined hog industry is reviled wherever they go."
"We have offered facts that we can back up," said Dunavant. "This is about people, property rights and the good people of Halifax County, not just the few who are in the hog business."
Jim Smiley called for greater setbacks for hog producers and said that his primary concern was "safe water for all to drink."
SAFE speakers included hog producer Billy Wooding who described state requirements which govern disposition of hog waste at his farm as well as the lagoon itself as protecting him and the public. On odor, Wooding said that someone could walk behind him when he is spreading hog waste "and get their feet wet and eat a sandwich."
"Hog prices are basically where they were 40 years ago," Wooding told the crowd. The farmer said the market is driving farmers to confinement operations.
Scottsburg farmer Don Reese said, "I think the majority of people want increased setbacks but not prohibition" of farms. "That is what they are asking for with Mecklenburg County" setbacks, said Reese. The farmer also said that in Virginia there had been no record of surface water or well contamination and named DEQ restrictions as the reason.
SAFE chairman Tucker Watkins told the audience that "a lot of issues of been raised and some don't fly."
The SAFE chairman called the free-range hog plan bad environmentally and just not efficient.
From his own investigation into hog production, Watkins cited three main issues: streams, sub-surface water and air quality. He also spoke in support of asking the legislature for additional funds for more inspectors for the facilities.

An elderly South Boston man died early yesterday afternoon about two hours after the car he was driving collided with a tractor-trailer rig at the intersection of Routes 58 and 501 in Riverdale.
The identity of the 90-year-old South Boston resident was being withheld by state police pending notification of next of kin.
Trooper D.J. Cline said it is not known if the victim's death was directly related to injuries sustained in the crash.
The victim's wife, 77-year-old Norma Sue Guiffrido of South Boston, was seriously injured in the crash and was transferred to Duke University Medical Center in Durham, N.C. for further treatment.
The death of the South Boston resident marked the second highway traffic fatality of the year on Halifax County's highways.
The driver of the tractor-trailer rig, Tommy Lee Hunter, 46, of Asheboro, N.C., was not injured in the crash that occurred at about 11:20 a.m.
Trooper Cline said that the car driven by the South Boston man was heading east on Route 58 and made a left turn to head north on Route 501. The car pulled into the path of the on the tractor-trailer rig driven by Hunter which was headed west on Route 58 and the two vehicles collided in the intersection with the tractor-trailer rig crashing into the passenger side of the car.
Rescue workers needed several minutes to cut open a portion of the car to free Norma Guiffrido from the wreckage.
The 1988 model car driven by the deceased victim was declared a total loss with damage estimated at $2,500. An estimated $2,000 damage was done to the 1989 model tractor-trailer rig driven by Hunter.
Trooper Cline had charged the deceased victim with reckless driving.

A six percent pay hike for teachers and other school system employees ranks high among a series of the key initiatives in the 1999-2000 county school budget.
"We think that is a reasonable expectation," county school superintendent Dennis Witt told the Halifax County School Board Tuesday night.
"We want to make sure we pay all of our employees an appropriate salary for the services they render."
County school board chairman Alan Gravitt asked Witt if any thought has been given to differentiating teacher salaries based on what they taught and how well they taught.
"We should be developing ways to reward teachers or bring in an accountability factor," Witt said.
"I think it is a very complex issue simply because the structure of public education has changed dramatically."
School board member Carl Furches said that he agrees with teacher accountability.
"At the same time," Furches said, "you've got to have some student accountability and some parent accountability. That has to be looked at when a teacher has to be held accountable for what a student does."
Witt noted that along with teachers, he and school system administrators are concerned with improving salaries and pay scales of support personnel with a particular eye cast toward salaries and pay scales of computer lab managers and secretaries.
"We have asked an outside evaluator to come in and look at the secretarial classification and make any recommendations that will make it have more parity," Witt told the board.
Earlier in the evening, Halifax Education Association president Henry Weston presented the HEA's program and policy proposals for 1999-2000 which included a six percent pay hike (see separate story).
If the six percent pay hike is ultimately adopted by the school board, it would be one of the largest pay hikes given to teachers and school system employees in years.
Last year the school board was able to fund an average 4.2 percent pay hike for teachers for the 1998-99 school year and a four percent pay increase for all other classification of employees.
The list of 1999-2000 school year budget initiatives presented to the school board were, for the most part, not backed by dollar figures. And, no proposed total budget figure was presented.
"We're waiting on the numbers from the General Assembly," Witt said in noting that it is impossible to put an estimated budget package out until the General Assembly firmly establishes the level of funding for such things as teacher salary increases and school capital improvement and construction funds.
He did say, however, that he hopes that the numbers will be in place by the first or March or shortly thereafter.
Witt also did not say when the school board would have to have its budget finalized.
"We will have to work with the Supervisors (Halifax County Board of Supervisors) on that," he said.
"We will try to meet whatever the Supervisors' expectations are on that."
While the salary hikes were high on the list, Witt unveiled an initiative to increase the amount of money that the school system will pay toward the individual employee's group health insurance premium by $10 per month ($100 for the year based upon 10 months).
Also included in the budget proposal is a $75,000 expenditure to provide a duty-free lunch period for all elementary school teachers.
The money would be used to pay aides and other personnel to supervise children while teachers eat lunch.
"It has been requested time and again," Witt said.
"We think it's worth looking at."
Deputy Superintendent Dr. Bobby R. Hall told the school board that based upon current enrollment projections for next year, five additional teachers will be needed on the elementary school level.
Two additional teachers will be needed at South Of Dan while Volens, Turbeville, Sinai, and Meadville will need an additional teacher. That projection showed that C.H. Friend will need one less teacher, leaving a net gain of five positions.
On the secondary school level, Dr. Hall said that it appears that two additional teachers, one in math and one in English, will be needed at Halifax County High School. He noted, however, that the situation may work out to where that only an English teacher will be needed.
In Special Education, three new teachers are projected to be needed for the 1999-2000 school year along with two additional classroom aides.
Dr. Hall pointed out that the new Halifax Career Center (the new site for the county's alternative education program) will be staffed by the present Project HOPE staff but that an additional classroom teacher and an additional computer lab manager will be needed.
Also in personnel, it is being proposed that the school system hire an additional RN to serve as a school nurse to work with the elementary schools.
Dr. Hall said that Halifax County High School principal Larry Clark had requested that school system officials consider hiring an additional school nurse and placing the nurse that currently serves the high school three days a week and the middle school two days a week at the high school full time.
"We felt we could not make that recommendation without having anyone at the elementary schools at this point," Dr. Hall said.
Also included in the budget initiatives package was the hiring of a full testing specialist to assist with all aspects of the administration of the SOL tests and end of course SOL tests at the high school.
That individual would be assigned primarily to Halifax County High School but would also have some division-wide duties to handle.
Hall said that hiring a testing specialist would help ease the burden on the staff of the high school Guidance Department.
The budget initiatives package also included the purchase of three additional school buses and hiring of three additional bus drivers in order to implement a dual bussing system in the South of Dan-Cluster Springs school zone.
In terms of the capital needs, the budget initiative includes $600,000 to complete the renovation work of the former Craddock-Terry Shoe Corporation building to house the Halifax Career Center.
"This money has already been budgeted and accounted for," Witt said, "so it really won't take any money away from next year's budget."
Also, the package of budget initiatives includes funding for at least two mobile classrooms at an estimated price of $25,000 each. One of the mobile classrooms would go to Turbeville and the other would go to South of Dan or Volens, whichever has the greatest need. There is a possibility that a mobile classroom could be needed at each school which would drive up the number needed to three.
Witt noted that there should be a balance of $574,000 in the school system's construction fund which was created this year through the Board of Supervisors available to handle capital needs.
The school superintendent stated that the current balance is $586,000. Added to that is an estimated $180,000 which represents the proceeds of the sale of the final one third of the school system's Trigon stock and $408,000 in state school construction funds, making a total of $1,174,000. Taking $600,000 out for the completion of the Halifax Career Center, leaves a balance of $574,000.
That figure, Witt added, doesn't include revenues that the school system may receive from state lottery proceeds and new state revenues.
In addition, Witt pointed out that the school system will be receiving $442,000 in state funds for technology. That, Witt pointed out, will allow the school system to reallocate local dollars in technology to other needs.
School Board chairman Alan Gravitt asked school system officials about monies for remediation for those students who fail their grade and students who have failed the SOL tests.
Witt responded by saying that remediation is an issue that will have to be examined.
"We expanded the Summer School program this year," Witt explained, "and we anticipate doing that this year. We're also looking at some after school tutoring program or after school group programs."
He stated that remediation has been a line item in the county school budget and that there will be some state funds for remediation coming to the school system for that purpose.

Five teenage girl students were arrested early yesterday morning at Halifax County High School and charged with disorderly conduct in the wake of a fight that broke out in the school cafeteria.
Halifax County High School principal Larry Clark said the fight erupted over long held ill feelings over whether or not the deceased victim of a fatal traffic accident was the driver involved.
The students, two of whom were ninth graders, were immediately suspended from school in the wake of the fight that broke out at shortly after 8:30 a.m. just as students had begun to move on to their first block class.
"All of them have been suspended from school and I have recommended to the superintendent (county school superintendent Dennis Witt) that they should be suspended for the remainder of the school year," Clark said.
Clark said a discipline panel selected by the county school superintendent will hear the charges and, after having heard from school administrators as well as the students involved, the panel will make a recommendation to the superintendent regarding the status of the students.
"The panel can make a recommendation supporting my recommendation to the superintendent, reverse my recommendation, or alter my recommendation," Clark explained.
That hearing, Clark said, is expected to be held sometime next week.
Clark explained that the fight began between two young ladies and that three others joined in the fracas, creating a disruption for students in the cafeteria who were trying to make their way to class.
Some 500 plus students were in the cafeteria at the time the fight broke out.
"It was more of a disruption and vulgar language than physical acts of violence," Clark said of the situation.
"Only the two girls who were initially fighting were actually fighting."
The high school principal pointed out that when such situations erupt when large numbers of students are present a large disruption to the school day and school environment results.
"It becomes a terrible disruption to the ordinary functioning of the school," pointed out Clark.
More often than not, Clark said, such incidents often occur in front of a large audience of students.
" These things rarely ever occur in isolation," he said.
"That is a factor I have to take into account when I assess the seriousness of it."
Clark said that he has been told that the fight goes back to some long harbored ill feelings about a fatal traffic accident.
"It goes back to a situation regarding some feelings these people have about a fatal accident as to who was driving a vehicle," explained Clark.
"They had been told that question as to the driver had gone to court and that the court has ruled who the driver was."
Clark said that Beth Talley, one of the faculty advisors of the school's Peer Mediation program has told him that the individuals involved in the fight had been to mediation on at least six occasions and that arrangements had even been made for police to come in and talk to the students about the situation.
"We have done all we can can within our power and service to resolve this situation which has nothing to do at all with school," Clark stated.
"I don't know of anything else we could do to bring closure to the situation."
Clark said he addressed the students over the school's public address system after the fight, telling them that he and school administrators will not tolerate such conduct.
He also explained that the participants in the incident had been suspended from school and all of them were being charged with disorderly conduct.

An "F Company Memorial & 58 Years Later Ceremony" will be held on Wednesday, February 3, at South Boston's National Guard Armory, beginning at 10:30 a.m.
The guest speaker will be Major General Carroll Thackston of South Boston, recently retired Adjutant General for the state of Virginia.
A former member of Company F, Lawson W. Osborne, will serve as narrator for the program.
The sequence of events includes the welcome and the recognition of distinguished guests by the narrator, and the invocation by the Rev. Jack Stewart.
Gen. Thackston will bring his remarks, and the Rev. Jack Stewart will pronounce the benediction.
The ceremony will be concluded with remarks by the narrator and the placement of a memorial wreath.
Company F, 116th Infantry, Virginia Army National Guard unit of the 29th Division, WWII, was inducted into federal service February 3, 1941, with a unit strength of 94 men. It served in the European Theater of military operations from October 1942 until the cessation of hostilities on May 8, 1945.
F Company was a first assault unit on the Normandy coast of France on June 6, 1944--D-Day--and suffered 79 casualties. Numerous individuals were decorated for valor that day.
Of the 94 men from the South Boston-Halifax County area who served with F Company during this period of American history, approximately 14 are still living.

Authorities were continuing their efforts yesterday to find a man who escaped after allegedly assaulting Halifax County Sheriff's Department Sgt. S.T. Moser during a scuffle early yesterday morning near Birchland Park.
Major R.L. Link said early yesterday afternoon that Sgt. Moser has a suspect and that it was expected that warrants would be obtained sometime late yesterday for the man's arrest.
Link said that at approximately 1 a.m. yesterday Sgt. Moser observed a vehicle with its lights on sitting on the side of the road on Route 662 in the Birchland Park area and pulled in behind the vehicle.
According to Link, Sgt. Moser saw three occupants in the car and when he approached the vehicle one of the occupants got out of the back seat and stated that he needed to leave.
Sgt. Moser, Link explained, advised the man to stay in the car for just a short time. But, the man got out of the back seat and attempted to leave. When he did that Sgt. Moser grabbed the man's jacket. A scuffle ensued between Sgt. Moser and the man and Sgt. Moser was knocked to the ground.
Sgt. Moser got up and ran and caught the man and a second scuffle ensued between the two men. The man escaped, however, and ran into the woods.
Other deputies and State Police who were called to the scene searched for the suspect but were unable to locate him.

Thomas E. Brank of Nathalie died Tuesday, January 26, 1999 at his home. He was 44 years of age.
Mr. Brank retired as Senior Chief Petty Officer, serving in the U.S. Navy.
Survivors include his wife, Sandra Bank of Chesapeake; one daughter, Robyn; one sister, Eilien Bergman, and one brother, Brian Brank, both of Texas.
A memorial service will be held Saturday, January 30 at 3 p.m. in the chapel of Altmeyer Funeral Home in VA Beach with Rev. Wayne Cook officiating.

Grayzelle Downey Hudson Giles of Richmond, formerly of Virgilina, died Tuesday, January 26, 1999 at University Park Nursing Home in Richmond. She was 84 years of age.
Mrs. Giles was born June 22, 1914 in Granville County, NC the daughter of Thomas Calvin Downey and Beatrice Willard Downey and was first married to Charlie J. Hudson and later to Edwin C. Giles. She was a member of Parham Road Baptist Church in Richmond and a long time member of Grace Baptist Church at Omega.
The funeral will be held at Grace Baptist Church today, January 29 at 2 p.m. with Rev. Jack Stewart officiating. Burial will take place in the church cemetery.

Survivors of Mrs. Giles include one daughter, Faye H. Elliott of Richmond; one son, C. Jordan Hudson Jr. of Richmond; four grandchildren; and one great-grandchild.

Gertrude Stevens, 87, of Keene, TX, formerly of Republican Grove, died on Tuesday, January 26, 1999.
She was married to the late Thomas A. Stevens. Survivors include one son, Charles; one grandson, Thomas G.; one step-great-grandson, Benjamin Bates; and one sister, Marjorie Harrop.
Services will be held Sunday, January 31 at 2 p.m. at Republican Grove Seventh Day Adventist Church.

Visitation will be at the church from noon until the service.