Georgia Will Help Address South Fulton Landfill Fire That’s Burned For Five Months
The state of Georgia will help the city of South Fulton put out a landfill fire that’s been burning for five months. The Georgia Environmental Protection Division is using state money to bring in experts to put out the underground fire, after the local fire department wasn’t able to extinguish it.
Larry Few, South Fulton’s fire chief, said that his department was able to put out flames above ground on Sept. 20, but the underground fire continues to smolder, and the smoke is affecting people in the area.
“This is an environmental hazard in that area, I consider it that,” Few said. “We have schools in that area. They’re impacted by this. Our children are impacted by that atmosphere down there.”
According to the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, the smoke from the fire doesn’t contain toxins that could have long term effects, but in the short term, it can cause nausea, make it hard to breathe, and irritate people’s throats and eyes.
“The foul smell of something burning 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, you can imagine the horror that the neighbors and the businesses are experiencing in that area,” Few said. “You can’t even come outside, without that smell.”
State Rep. Debra Bazemore, who represents South Fulton, said she worked with Gov. Brian Kemp and Georgia Department of Natural Resources Director Richard Dunn to get money to address the fire from the state’s Solid Waste Trust Fund.
“We do understand however this may not take care of the entire problem, but it’s a start,” Bazemore said.
According to a spokesman from the Georgia Environmental Protection Division, the work at the landfill will take 10-14 weeks, but that’s once the state’s contractor has gained access to the site, which hasn’t happened yet, because the owner hasn’t cooperated.
“Though we have dealt with fires at abandoned landfills in the past, it is fair to say that this type of situation with a responsible party refusing to address the situation after extensive enforcement actions is highly unusual,” he said.
The owner of the illegal landfill is in jail for the second time related to this fire. He’s being held for contempt of court for failing to work on putting it out.
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