Residents urge Coffee County to pause proposed 60‑house poultry operation near Satilla River

Dozens of residents urged the Coffee County Board of Commissioners on July 7 to pause or reexamine plans for a proposed 60‑house poultry operation sited along the Satilla River, presenting a petition they said contains more than 4,300 signatures and warning of environmental and public‑health risks.

Shannon Gregory, identified in the meeting as Satilla Riverkeeper, told commissioners the petition opposes locating the large poultry complex "on the banks of the Satilla River," saying it would be "twice the size of any chicken poultry facility in the State of Georgia" and that siting it on a riverbank is "dangerous" because of runoff risks to fish and private wells.

The remarks were followed by a series of neighbors’ statements. Charles Stapleton asked detailed questions about pest control, wastewater handling, disposal of dead birds, hours of operation, numbers of employees, buffer zones and the construction timeline, and said he understood no county building permit had yet been obtained. "This chicken factory farm would supply people from out of our Country to ruin our county," Stapleton said. Several residents, including Kathleen Dixon and Kim Smith, said they feared impacts on children and grandchildren; Karen Boone worried about effects on a nearby protected wildlife area; and Bebe Brooker Merritt said her family farm sits in close proximity and she feared soil disturbance and animal displacement.

County Attorney Tony Rowell responded to procedural questions about permitting and public input. Rowell said the Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD) had issued land‑disturbance permits for the project, and he confirmed that county housing/building permits would also be required. On public notice, Rowell said the standard permit process does not include a formal period for public comment and that the board could consider changing procedures, but cautioned that creating a new rule would apply broadly: "When you make the rule, you do not make the rule for just this, you make the rule and exception for everything." He asked citizens to submit any information they had gathered for the county to review.

Chairman Johnny Wayne Jowers thanked residents for coming and asked them to share documentation. No formal action or vote on a moratorium or permitting change occurred at the meeting; commissioners signaled they would consider whether to alter procedures but did not set a timeline for that review.

What happened next: the public comment period closed with the board accepting citizens’ submissions and indicating staff and counsel would consider next steps. The commission did not adopt an emergency pause or new permitting restriction during the session.