The Iowa Supreme Court on Thursday reversed a long-standing precedent that allowed landowners to sue for damages when a neighboring hog farm causes water pollution or odor problems that affect quality of life.
The earlier ruling established that a portion of Iowa’s law providing immunity to livestock farms from neighbors’ nuisance lawsuits violated the inalienable rights clause of the Iowa Constitution. It also found neighbors could sue if they had lived in the area long before the farm began operating, had sustained significant hardship, and did not benefit from the nuisance immunity granted to the livestock farm.
The decision is a significant blow to property owners in rural areas who want to take legal action over expanding hog farms. Waterman wrote Thursday that balancing the competing interests of hog farmers and neighbors “is a quintessentially legislative function involving policy choices our constitution places with the elected branches.”
The Iowa high court has six conservative justices appointed by Republican governors and one Democratic appointee. Last Friday, the court overturned its 2018 decision that guaranteed Iowans the fundamental right to abortion under the state constitution.Justices Brent Appel and Christopher McDonald wrote in dissenting opinions that they would have upheld the 2004 case that provided for hog farm challenges. Justice Dana Oxley agreed.
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