The Ohio Department of Agriculture issued a final Permit to Install (PTI) and final Permit to Operate (PTO) for Heartland Quality Egg Farm located at 9800 CR 26 in West Mansfield earlier this week.

The Logan County farm is in Bokescreek Township situated in the Upper Scioto River Watershed. The farm is owned and operated by Weaver Brothers, Inc.

The final Permit to Install for Heartland Quality Egg Farm authorizes construction to increase the facility's design capacity to 1,754,910 laying hens in seven barns.

Existing barns 1 through 4 will be demolished and replaced by three new barns.

The remaining barns at the facility will be renumbered as barns 1 thru 7. Barns 1 thru 3 will each have a capacity of 317,850 hens, existing barns 4 thru 6 will each have a capacity of 183,120 birds and barn 7 will house 252,000 layers.

The final PTO regulates operations with plans for manure management, insect and rodent control, mortality management and emergency response. This permit is valid for 5 years.

The Heartland Quality Egg Farm Final Permit to Install and final Permit to Operate can be appealed within 30 days to the Environmental Review Appeals Commission, 309 South Fourth Street, Room 222, Columbus, Ohio 43215.

The appeal period ends at 5:00 p.m. on June 2nd. A copy of the appeal must be served on the Director of Agriculture within three days after filing the appeal with the Environmental Review Appeals Commission.

For more information on ODA's Livestock Environmental Permitting Program, go to www.ohioagriculture.gov and click on Regulatory Programs.