Dive Brief:
- The Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM) has revoked an expansion permit for the Dothan Landfill over application issues, setting the long-delayed project back by months.
- CDG Engineers, the company hired to complete the city's application, didn't identify two of 17 landowners with adjoining property. This prevented ADEM from notifying all adjacent landowners which is required by law.
- Though CDG plans to submit new paperwork at its own expense this week, the process could take an estimated 75-90 days. The landfill reached capacity in 2014 and refuse is currently being exported.
Dive Insight:
This is one of many setbacks that Dothan has faced in trying to expand its landfill over the past few years. In 2012, the city planned to buy 182 acres next to the site, but the official sale was delayed until 2014. As a result the landfill reached capacity before more space was available and the city has since been spending millions of dollars to export its waste.
Opposition from local residents over odors and potential health effects have also complicated the situation. Two people — one of whom is a former mayoral candidate — appealed a permit modification in January. ADEM says their argument is now moot since the permit has been revoked, but they refuse to give up.
The EPA also agreed to investigate claims of racial discrimination over the landfill's location in March. Similar environmental justice complaints have been raised elsewhere in the state, most notably in Uniontown where four residents are currently fighting a $30 million defamation lawsuit brought by the local landfill company.
