North carolina hog farm faces fresh environmental violations despite waste treatment technology

Environmental watchdogs have uncovered new pollution violations at White Oaks Farm in Wayne County, North Carolina, highlighting ongoing concerns about industrial hog farming’s impact on local waterways and communities.

In early January, Samantha Krop, the Neuse riverkeeper, and Taylor Register, a water quality specialist from the nonprofit Sound Rivers, investigated the facility after receiving reports of potential contamination. Despite two weeks without rainfall, the team discovered evidence of environmental problems at the operation, which houses thousands of hogs in the rural Fremont area.

The violations are particularly troubling because White Oaks Farm has invested in modern waste management technology, including a biodigester system designed to capture methane from hog waste and equipment to spray processed waste onto surrounding farm fields. However, these upgrades have failed to prevent the facility from continuing to pollute the local environment, raising questions about the effectiveness of current industry practices.

This latest incident adds to a growing pattern of violations at the troubled facility, which operates in a region where industrial hog farming has long been criticized for disproportionately affecting low-income and minority communities. The violations come as North Carolina grapples with how to balance agricultural economics with environmental protection and public health concerns in areas where large-scale livestock operations are concentrated near sensitive waterways like the Neuse River.