While some may be praising a young business owner for creating a business to properly dispose of manure from local horse shows, neighbors and nearby business owners say the smell is ruining Mill Spring.

Corbett Stone, who owns Tryon Equine Compost, bought the property off Hwy. 9 just past the Mill Spring Crossroad about six months ago. He says has done everything legally and it was definitely not his intention to come in and upset the neighbors.

“It’s unfortunate that it’s turned into a situation like this but we’re trying to do something better for this area and better manage the manure issues,” Stone said. While nearby neighbors and business owners say they support local business, they say the smell and the flies the manure pile is causing is too much for a residential community.

A local business started a petition with 553 signatures as of early Monday. See text of petition at the end of the story.

Adjacent neighbor to Tryon Equine Compost, Jackie Jackson, said the stench of the manure and urine will turn anyone’s stomach and it’s being dumped within feet of her backyard.
“Where the elderly can’t sit on their front porches to enjoy the fall weather due to the stench; where families like myself can’t let their children play outside due to the odor, insects that (the manure) is attracting, the vapors and dust in the air as it dries out,” Jackson said.

Jackson said the manure is not only causing her family problems, but people are complaining about the smell while driving in the area taking their children to three nearby schools, local business patrons are being subjected to the odor and a church is literally in their backyard, “where people should be allowed to worship in peace and safely.”

“I myself can’t even plan to have a cookout or to carve pumpkins outside with my children due to this manure in my backyard,” Jackson said. “The smell is revolting. Walking to my car alone makes me have to cover my nose so I don’t feel nauseous. I fear for the safety of my family due to the unsanitary aspect of this. Not just the air quality alone. It’s in the open air, within feet of the creek at the bottom of a hill. And what about our well water?”

Adjacent property owner Joy Conner wrote a letter to the editor, published in the Bulletin Friday, Oct. 23, saying families are concerned about their property values and the odor is crossing all the way to Toney Road in Mill Spring.

“I myself welcome all new businesses and the jobs it has provided for our small community unless it’s going to cause health concerns for our families in the future,” Conner said. Conner also said she welcomes anyone to her property to inhale what her community has to deal with.

Anita Ledbetter, of Anita’s Beauty Shop near the Crossroad, says she can smell it at her shop and so do her customers.

“The first time I smelled it I thought, oh my goodness, something is wrong with my septic tank,” Ledbetter said. Ledbetter said the flies have tripled and her customers talk about the smell and wonder if she’s having septic tank issues, which she is not.

“I run around with a fly swatter,” said Ledbetter. “I just can’t believe they let it go on down there. I’ve been here 45 years and I’ve never smelt anything like it. I could not imagine someone having to eat while smelling that. It’s ruining Mill Spring. The tourists coming through…it’s going to drive them away.”

Stone said 99 percent of what is being put on social media is false, not to mention it’s slandering his name and business. He said the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources (NCDENR) was recently at his business and he is in compliance.

Stone said he’s been working on this venture for two years and has worked closely with not only NCDENR, but with both the county’s agricultural economic development director and the county’s economic development director. He said many are excited about his business because it is so needed in Polk County.

Currently, he is hauling manure from Tryon International Equestrian Center (TIEC), which had its last show for the year this weekend.

“My intention was not to come in and upset everybody,” Stone said. “I talked to local business owners there and they swayed me to purchase the property.”

Stone, 30, has owned Tryon Equine Compost for two years and lives in Tryon. He said he is working towards lessening the odor of the manure and residents will soon get a break because TIEC’s last show was this weekend so no new manure will be hauled there for a few months.

One concrete pad for the manure to sit on was scheduled to be complete over the weekend and another concrete pad is scheduled for completion Nov. 2, Stone said. He also said he has other plans for metal structures that have canvas covers, which will lessen the odor. Stone said as soon as he was informed of the complaints a while back he stopped hauling and construction for two weeks.

People asked him if he would sell his property with Stone saying, “Sure if everybody wants me out, but I’m not going to sell it for a loss. I definitely heard the complaints. I feel awful about everybody being unhappy about it.”

Kelly Bader, owner of Kelly’s General Store at the crossroads, said there were no flies there last summer and now it’s a constant battle. While the Bulletin was interviewing neighbors and business owners, flies were prevalent in the general store, although there was no smell of manure that afternoon. Bader says she can open her truck door and 30 flies will be in there. She said people are now calling Mill Spring the “[Expletive] Pit” and customers in her store talk and ask about the smell.

“You can walk in here some days and the smell will blow you over,” Bader said. She said the smell was its worst when it was hot this summer, and particularly any time it rains or is humid. She said her biggest concern is the fact is that it’s such a major health issue.

Adjoining neighbor Trent Jackson says the worst times for the odor is from about 6-7 p.m. through lunchtime.

“It’s horrible. It’s revolting,” Trent Jackson said. He said killing flies in his house has become a daily occurrence since the manure.  “Every morning, my little five-year old, the first thing she says is, ‘Mommy, Daddy, it stinks out here,’” said Trent Jackson. “I don’t care what people do on their property but that, next door to families and kids and a church? That needs to be out in the county with lots of acreage. Not in the middle of a community.”

Jerry Halford, who lives on Toney Rd., said he can smell it some days. He said everything related to state and federal laws exempts agriculture. He said he works with Conner near the manure and has had a sore throat after working near it.

“You go down there in the morning and can see vapors rising off it,” Halford said. “If it weren’t classified as agricultural, it would be hazardous material.”

Halford said the business has really ruined Mill Sprig for anything other than what Stone is doing. “Of all places, you know,” Halford said. “Nobody’s going to put a restaurant or anything next to a manure processing plant.”

Stone’s background includes owning a tree company as an arborist for 10 years and has background in water quality management with the South Carolina Department of Transportation. Stone says he is one of three people certified with Contech, a company that installs 90 percent of water quality devices in North and South Carolina.

Stone said the idea is to set up a proper management system to make an organic product. He said TIEC’s alternative was hauling the manure to the Rutherford County Landfill, and there’s only so much room.

“It’s something much needed and quite honestly, there hasn’t been anyone around willing to tackle it,” Stone said.

Stone said before TIEC began, there were an estimated 6,000 horses in the area and estimates are upon the equestrian center’s completion there will be 10,000 horses in the area. Each horse, according to Stone, produces 50 lbs. of manure a day. He estimates that 70 percent of what he hauls from the stalls is wood shavings, and a majority of the odor is the smell from the decomposition of the wood shavings.

He said he’s started discussions to start a program for him to go to local farms and teach manure maintenance so they could set up small scale composting. He said once he gets up and going, he plans to purchase more land and a bigger facility to also haul for private farms.

Stone said he is also planning to add to the area’s job growth as he is going to need employees, which will add to the local economy. For hauling, he employs two, including himself but currently has five employees during construction of the concrete pads. Stone said he has already helped the agricultural center with compost for Ashley Meadow’s community gardens and is discussing getting students involved with manure management at Polk High School.

Conner said Stone is a nice young man, but the problem is he is bringing manure load after load all day long.

“My family, the community cannot stand the odors, flies and concerns of health issues,” Conner said. “We only want to enjoy our homes but cannot. We are not bothering his family; he lives somewhere else with his children, so why doesn’t he consider our concerns and please move his manure somewhere else?”

Following is the text of the petition circulating against Stone’s business: Attn. Mill Spring Hwy 9 and Hwy 108 residents: (Corbett) Stone purchased a piece of property on Hwy. 9 here in Mill Spring 1,000 yards from the crossroads. He is hauling horse manure in and dumping it on this piece of property. There is a very real concern on health, air quality, and well water due to the dumping of horse manure within a few hundred feet of personal properties, businesses, church and not to mention three schools. The odor from the manure is sickening, and the flies are so bad you can’t even be outdoors. Families cannot sit outside and enjoy the beautiful fall weather, and that is a horrible shame. The vapors and gases plus the contamination of water and air quality are something we together must stop for ourselves and children and grandchildren. Please sign below to help us stop this injustice. Kelly Bader, owner of Kelly’s General Store.