Wednesday, October 8, 2024–11:50 a.m.

-David Crowder, WRGA News-

The Floyd County Commission has approved a resolution to implement a 90-day moratorium on the issuance of permits for new or expanded commercial poultry and concentrated animal feeding operations.

The moratorium will allow time to get input from the agricultural community on amendments to such operations.

“This is just a 90-day pause for us to take an evaluation of these operations and our current ordinances,” said Floyd County Commission Chair Allison Watters. “We have already been in touch with members of the local farm bureau and we will seek their input, as well as from other members of the agricultural community as we take a look at our ordinances. So, this is just a 90-day moratorium.”

During the last county commission meeting, a number of residents of Bethel Church Road in Silver Creek spoke against the construction of a proposed commercial broiler and chicken houses in the area.

Under the current Unified Land Development Code, chicken houses are permitted uses in the Agricultural-Residential district.

A building permit for the Bethel Church Road operation has been granted through the Rome-Floyd County Building Inspection Department.

The moratorium will not have an impact on that project.

However, the applicant still has to go through the state permit process with the Georgia Department of Agriculture.