County commissioners wanted larger setbacks
By Susan Redden
sredden@joplinglobe.com
CARTHAGE, Mo. — Jasper County wanted the larger setbacks contained in a bill on the regulation of confined animal feeding operations, but Jim Honey, Eastern District county commissioner, said he was not surprised that the state Senate approved an amendment stripping most provisions from the measure.
“We wanted there to be greater setbacks, and for the DNR (Department of Natural Resources) to have the manpower for them to do what they need to do in enforcing the rules,” Honey said. “But a lot of counties have local controls and want to keep them, and I can understand that too.”
Members of the County Commission on Thursday heard a review of the CAFO debate that took place Monday at the legislative conference of the Missouri Association of Counties.
Honey, who attended the session, said there was “a lot of fur flying” when members discussed provisions of the bill that would have barred counties from imposing their own CAFO regulations and would have invalidated any local rules now in effect.
Honey said many counties wanted setbacks contained in the compromise legislation.
“But about 30 counties have local ordinances, and they’re definitely against anything that would bar local control,” he said.
Members of the Senate on Thursday stripped out most parts of the measure that would have made it more difficult for counties to impose local restrictions. The Senate also voted to create a committee to study the issue after the legislative session ends next month.
The Jasper County commissioners have expressed little interest in developing local CAFO rules, despite requests from some local landowners, most vocally one who owns land near a huge dairy operation.
Honey during the meeting called the potential rules “another layer of government.” He said later that the county does not have the expertise or the money for workers to enforce CAFO rules, which would have to be adopted as part of a health ordinance because the county does not have zoning and planning.
The commissioners also met with Bob Nichols of the Environmental Task Force of Jasper and Newton Counties. He said the group formed a committee to study the lower Shoal Creek watershed after streams in that watershed were designated as “impaired” by the state.
Nichols said the group is proposing similar action in the Spring River watershed. Parts of the river through Carthage also have been added to the impaired list.
“We’d like your support and want one of you to chair the committee,” he said, noting that Jerry Carter, presiding commissioner in Newton County, heads the Shoal Creek group.
Nichols also is active in the Tri-State Water Resource Coalition. He asked that Jasper County name a new representative to the board to replace Chuck Surface, former presiding commissioner. John Bartosh, who now holds the post, said he will fill the vacancy.
The commissioners also:
n Heard from Darieus Adams, Western District commissioner, that the county has received several applications for money available through a federal shelter grant administered by the county.
n Adopted an agreement with the Missouri Department of Transportation under which the county will give up control over portions of four roads connecting with East Seventh Street during a state project to widen the road. The pact involves portions of Silver Leaf Lane, Garden Grove Lane, Travis Acres Lane and Kinser Lane.
n Approved a request to allow the use of parts of the courthouse lawn for a June 9 acoustic music festival.
Attendance, next meeting: Bartosh, Honey and Adams attended. The next meeting is scheduled for 9 a.m. Thursday at the courthouse in Carthage.
Commission offices: 625-4350 or 358-0421.
Barn for sale
The Jasper County commissioners said the barn and property owned by the former Jasper Special Road District will be sold May 18 during the county’s auction of surplus property. The county acquired the property and equipment when the district dissolved and became part of the county common road district.
Carthage, Jasper County
County Commission reviews CAFO debate
- Carthage, Jasper County
-
-
Carthage attorney, reformer of revenue department, dies
James R. Spradling, a Carthage attorney who was noted for his reform of the Missouri Department of Revenue in the 1970s, died at 5:50 a.m. Monday at McCune-Brooks Regional Hospital.
-
Bondswoman charged with false imprisonment
A bail bondswoman from Carthage is facing a charge of false imprisonment for allegedly attempting to put a man in jail without a judge’s order, then taking him home and handcuffing him to the banister of a staircase until a friend of the man paid her his bond money.
-
Man’s last statement to be given to defendant
A judge ruled Monday that the Jasper County prosecutor must provide attorneys for Darren J. Winans with a videotaped statement co-defendant Matthew D. Laurin made about the Sheldon murders shortly before killing himself.
-
Carthage proposes 1.6-cent rise in city property tax
A drop in the assessed value of Carthage real estate will translate to an increase of about 1.6 cents in the city’s proposed property tax rate.
-
Open house to celebrate projects at courthouse
Projects completed last year at the Jasper County Courthouse will be celebrated in ceremonies Thursday in the courthouse lobby.
County officials will join representatives of local chambers of commerce and others for a ribbon-cutting and open house to mark the opening of a Route 66 display in the lobby and a new “peace star” atop the building. -
State budget cuts reduce county funds
County officials are bracing for more state budget cuts to translate into a loss of county revenues.
In an effort to balance Missouri’s budget, the state earlier this year cut the amount it reimburses county assessors for work to determine property values. The budget approved by lawmakers for fiscal 2011 calls for cutting the amount the state reimburses counties to house prisoners bound for state lockup. -
Jo Ellis: County home to rare yellowwood tree
In late spring, drifts as white as snow fill the gutters and curbs on the east side of the Jasper County Courthouse. It isn’t snow, of course; it’s the fallen petals of the yellowwood tree that grows squarely in front of the door to the Jasper County Extension office.
-
Jasper County Commission gets building project update
Plans to close out one building project and start another were reviewed by the Jasper County Commission last week.
Darieus Adams, Western District associate commissioner, met Thursday with officials of the firm who designed a $292,400 project to upgrade the lighting and make other changes to make four county-owned buildings more energy efficient. -
Two men running for associate judge in 39th Circuit take case to court
Two men running for associate judge in Missouri’s 39th Circuit began battling it out in a Jasper County courtroom this week.
Jasper County Circuit Judge Gayle Crane heard arguments Wednesday concerning the disclosure of documents sought by Robert “Bobby” George, Aurora, the current Lawrence County prosecutor. -
Unveiling ceremony celebrates CHS tiger
Kandy Frazier, Carthage High School principal, summed it up once the new addition to the CHS campus was unveiled Thursday.
The bronze tiger sculpture created by Carthage artist and sculptor Bob Tommey, she said, is the kind of work that would be found at a big university. - More Carthage, Jasper County Headlines
-
Youngest-ever Speller Disappointed by Mistake
2 American Tourists Kidnapped in Egypt
Chen Guangcheng: 'Historic Transition' in China
New York City Seeks Big Drink Ban
Los Angeles Bans Plastic Grocery Bags
Raw Video: SpaceX Dragon Leaves Space Station
Police: Gunman Kills 5, Self in Seattle
Experts: Americans Must Prepare for Storm Season
Forest Fire Becomes New Mexico's Largest Ever
Montreal Police: Mailed Body Parts From Same Man
Facebook Expands Campus As Stock Shrinks
