Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Landfill Concerns topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Resident tells committee landfill may be accepting hazardous material; ADEQ oversight questioned
Summary
A resident told the Washington County committee that the local Waste Management landfill is accepting hazardous materials and producing gases that have harmed nearby residents, and said state regulators have not adequately enforced rules.
During the citizen comment period of the Washington County Quorum Court Budget and Finance Committee meeting, resident Kenneth Lovett said he and neighbors near the Waste Management landfill are experiencing health effects and that hazardous materials, including paint and solvents, are being placed in a facility permitted for nonhazardous waste.
Lovett said he moved to the area expecting typical landfill odor but not the exposure he described. "Paint cans, paint thinner, construction waste, you name it, it's in there," he told the committee. He said the gas-to-energy plant built in 2012 and an RNG (renewable natural gas) plant added in 2023 have worsened gas-related problems and that Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) has not adequately regulated the site in his view. He said he has been in contact with ADEQ since 2021 and will continue to press the agency.
Lovett asked the committee to recognize the issue and said the situation has caused physical harm to some residents. He said the landfill's permit is for nonhazardous waste and that the presence of hazardous material in landfills presents risks to neighbors.
No county action on the landfill was taken at the meeting; Lovett addressed the committee during the public-comment portion and said he is following up with ADEQ enforcement staff.
