TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) _ Commissioners in Shawnee County have approved a permit for a north-central Kansas company to store and sell anhydrous ammonia fertilizer.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports (http://bit.ly/MSXqF7 ) the commission voted unanimously this week after hearing from several farmers about the need for a retailer in the area.

St. Marys-based J.B. Pearl Sales & Service plans to put up two 30,000-gallon anhydrous ammonia tanks at a Shawnee County site owned by the company northwest of Topeka.

Anhydrous ammonia is a noxious gas that is stored and transported in tanks as a pressurized liquid, then injected into the ground as a fertilizer.

Officials of J.B. Pearl say more than 700 similar facilities currently operate throughout Kansas.