Low on the Hog: The Quality of Life near Swine Farms

North Carolina's swine industry is among the largest in the nation, second only to that of Iowa. By far, most of the hogs produced in North Carolina are raised in large industrial facilities with thousands of animals each. These operations have prompted concerns about noxious odors and potentially hazardous air emissions. Steve Wing, an associate professor of epidemiology in the School of Public Health at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and Suzanne Wolf, a research associate in epidemiology at the same university, evaluated adverse health effects and reduced quality of life among residents living close to intensive livestock operations in rural North Carolina [EHP 108:233-238]. Performed in February 1999 at the request of the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, the study evaluated 155