SOCASTEE, SC (WBTW) – A hemp processing facility, where dry hemp plants are pressed and made into CBD oil could make its way to Socastee following a rezoning request for the area.
Pure Assets LLC. submitted a request to rezone 3835 Socastee Blvd. in order to open the hemp processing facility.
Horry County councilman Johnny Vaught says the new facility could help the area economically.
“They’ll be hiring employees, they’ll be making use of a building that was priorly unoccupied. I think it will raise the standard of living in that particular area because there are a lot of unoccupied buildings in that area. Obviously any kind of economic development we can bring into an area is a positive thing,” Vaught said.
Pure Assets LLC. says turning hemp into oil does not pose any environmental or safety risks, and it is a fairly quiet process. Vaught says with the increasing popularity of CBD and hemp products, the economic impacts for the area are growing.
“I think it’s great that Horry County can cash in because lots of farmers are growing hemp as a cash crop, and we needed some kind of a cash crop to replace tobacco, because tobacco used to be the primary cash crop in Horry County, and so I think this is a good thing,” Vaught said.
Vaught expects the rezoning request to pass its final reading during the next county council meeting in January.
