Other rivers in the state face the same pressures as the Neuse River and need to be cleaned up to protect fisheries and drinking water supplies. The hog industry in North Carolina has grown from 2.5 million to 13 million swine in the last seven years. Most of the operations confine 5 - 10,000 hogs in one place and are controlled by large integrators. Lagoons and spray fields cause noxious odors and water pollution to streams and drinking water wells. The waste disposal problem has not been solved.
Recent inspections show that a significant proportion of operations continue to be in violation.
In 1997, the General Assembly passed HB 515 which contained provisions to lessen the impacts of the hog industry, including a moratorium on new permits. The job is not finished. The moratorium is likely to run out without solving the problems caused by lagoons and spray fields. An ongoing problem is that local governments have the ability to regulate only the largest of the hog operations. In 1997, the Division of Marine Fisheries was reorganized and strengthened.