Lawyer Challenges Pork Plant

January 1, 2010
Lawyer raises a stink about Ky. pork plant
By Martha Elson(Louisville, Ky.) Courier-Journal

Jon Salomon knew the JBS pork plant in Butchertown was only a couple of blocks away when he and his wife moved in 2008 from New York to a $465,000 condominium in Louisville, Ky.

But while they expected occasional odors, he said, "I was shocked" by the foul and often persistent stench.

"I've been to small towns where you wouldn't find that kind of odor on the farm," said Salomon, a 34-year-old former Wall Street lawyer.

Deciding that such odors shouldn't be legal anywhere - not even in a place called Butchertown - he quickly mounted an aggressive legal challenge on behalf of the Butchertown Neighborhood Association, and soon became the face of a communitywide debate.

Last month, supporters of the plant took to the street outside Salomon's downtown law office and handed out leaflets with his photo, saying, "Why is this man trying to drive 1,300 good jobs out of Louisville?" Read More

We’ve all seen this before. Someone moves into a new area and wants everyone else to conform to their demands. While the article does mention the jobs involved directly at the facility, it fails to mention all of the family farms that depend on it to process their hogs. Certainly the plant needs to be following the regulations in place, but why would you agree to buy this house in the first place if you were so offended by the odors. After all, he says it’s a persistent odor, which would mean he smelled it when he bought the place. It’s interesting that people think they should be able to tell ag-related businesses what to do. After all, you don’t see people moving in next door to an airport and then suing for noise pollution.