Business Licenses
Chicken Slaughterhouse Information
See new photos of new large-scale chicken houses that have been built recently in Wilson County.
Protecting Our Resources
The City of Wilson believes a large chicken slaughterhouse and the hundreds of factory-style chicken farms it would attract are potentially very bad for our water supply.
Several of the elected leaders in Nash County, our neighbors to the north, are trying to 
attract a massive poultry slaughterhouse to an area just a few miles from our growing community. The operation would spray vast amounts of wastewater onto a field in our watershed.
Many residents in Nash County are supportive of Wilson's efforts. Together, the city and the residents are hoping to convince Sanderson Farms, Inc. to build in a more suitable location. The effort is currently making its way through the courts.
This page includes links to articles, studies and videos that help explain why we are concerned about how our communities would be changed by this operation.
Recent
Barron's: This Stock Could Really Lay an Egg (August 2011)
Pew Video: The Poultry Industry's Threat to the Chespeake (July, 2011)
Pew Report Describes Water Pollution Caused by US Poultry Production (July 2011)
The Pew Charitable Trusts: Big Chicken: Pollution and Industrial Poultry Production in America (July, 2011)
WRAL: Questions Raised about Recruitment of Chicken Plant (May, 2011)
History
The City of Wilson is obligated to provide clean, fresh water to its residents. In the mid 1990s, the people of Wilson invested nearly $50 million to expand their water supply.
Wilson officials asked Nash County for time to study the environmental impacts of such an operation but were turned down. On November 10, 2010, the City Council voted unanimously to oppose the project, based on the limited information available. Later, Wilson, along with dozens of Nash County residents, filed suit against Nash County.
In March 2011, Nash County released an environmental assessment report for the Sanderson project. You can read that document here.
The following links include ads sponsored by citizen groups, conservation groups and the Wilson Economic Development Council.
Wilson Position Concerning the Poultry Facilities proposed Along Our Border Sponsored by the Wilson Economic Developoment Council
We Want You to Know the Truth Sponsored by Citizens of Nash and Wilson Counties, supported by the Pamlico-Tar River Foundation
Say NO to Sanderson Farms in Nash County Sponsored by Citizens of Nash and Wilson Counties, supported by the Pamlico-Tar River Foundation
The following links include maps of the proposed facility and its closeness to Wilson.
2010 Population Estimate for Wilson County
Wilson County Population Growth 2000 to 2010
Distance from the Proposed Plant
Environment Sensitivity Map- NC Division of Water Quality
Downloads
Nash County's environmental report for Sanderson Farms project (44.8 MB) TetraTech's water quality study summary (457 KB)