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Missouri fines CAFO, owned by Smithfield Foods, $18,000 for polluting streams with 300,000 gallons of waste

(Missouri Independent) – Regulators ordered an industrial hog farm in northern Missouri to pay more than $18,000 for spilling 300,000 gallons of manure into miles of nearby streams.  An advocate for environmentally responsible agriculture called that “pathetic,” noting the fine amounted to less than $0.04 per gallon of waste spilled.  “You’re talking about a multi-billion […]

Missouri Treasurer Scott Fitzpatrick (photo by Tim Bommel - Missouri House Communications)

Schools left ‘scrambling’ after Missouri treasurer tied bond deals to Attorney General’s COVID demands

(Missouri Independent) – It was just after 5 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 10, when the forms arrived from the state treasurer’s office. Without warning, and with little explanation, school superintendents discovered they were now required to certify their district had complied with Attorney General Eric Schmitt’s demands to drop all COVID-19 mitigation measures, such as […]

Chickens or poultry in a farm yard

Highly pathogenic avian influenza confirmed in Missouri commercial poultry flock

Federal officials have confirmed highly pathogenic avian influenza in a commercial chicken flock in Stoddard County, Missouri. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Veterinary Services Laboratory confirmed the presence of highly pathogenic influenza (HPAI) in the commercial broiler chicken flock. Samples were delivered to the Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory at the University of Missouri for […]

Audit Graphic

Missouri State Auditor begins audit of Texas County

State Auditor Nicole Galloway today announced that her office has begun a regularly scheduled audit of Texas County, located in south-central Missouri. The most recent audit of Texas County was completed in November 2017 and gave the county an overall performance rating of “poor,” the lowest possible. “My office will conduct an independent review of government operations […]

Power Outage

Underground wire fault causes power outage in Trenton

Power was out for approximately 25 minutes for almost 550 customers in Trenton on Tuesday afternoon, March 1st. That according to City Administrator and Utility Director Ron Urton, who says the power outage affected an area mainly west of the railroad tracks. Urton reports an underground wire faulted and shorted out near Eighth and Washington […]

Screenshot of USDA or United States Department of Agriculture website

USDA announces March 2022 lending rates for agricultural producers

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced loan interest rates for March 2022, which are effective March 1, 2022. USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) loans provide important access to capital to help agricultural producers start or expand their farming operation, purchase equipment, and storage structures, or meet cash flow needs. Operating, Ownership, and Emergency Loans FSA […]

Generic City Water

Amount of copper and lead in water lines to have significant impact on operation of Trenton Municipal Utilities

At Monday night’s meeting of the Trenton City Council, Utility Director Ron Urton presented information that he says will have a significant future impact on Trenton Municipal Utilities, particularly with operations, projects, and funding. Urton said he’s been viewing webinars on the new EPA lead and copper rule regarding underground mains. Urton indicated an inventory […]

Cutis Cain Superintendent of the Year 2022 (Photo courtesy AASA)

The National Superintendent of the Year, Curtis Cain, is from Missouri

Curtis Cain, superintendent of Wentzville School District, in Wentzville, Mo., has been named the 2022 AASA National Superintendent of the Year. The announcement came at the National Conference on Education, hosted by AASA, The School Superintendents Association. The other National Superintendent of the Year® finalists were:  Quincy Natay, Chinle Unified School District No. 24, Chinle, Ariz. Kamela Patton, Collier County […]

Rollover Accident

Osborn teen injured in rollover crash

The highway patrol reports a car experienced a defect causing the steering wheel to lock, resulting in the car traveling off a lettered route in Clinton County.  The car overturned several times coming to rest on its wheels. Eighteen-year-old Quentin Hughes of Osborn received moderate injuries and was taken by EMS to Cameron Regional Medical […]