Wednesday, January 28, 2004
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Wednesday, January 28, 2004 |
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Smoke dwindles, but Fayetteville mulch pile may burn for 2 or 3 months By JOHN MUNFORD Measures to contain the mulch pile fire at D&S Environmental in Fayetteville have drastically cut down the amount of smoke choking area neighborhoods, according to officials. But since the fire can’t be extinguished, it may take another two to three months to burn itself out, said Kevin Chambers of the Georgia Environmental Protection Division. To smother the fire, D&S Environmental has dumped 300 truckloads of dirt on the smoldering mulch pile at its location on First Manassas Road, on the city’s southwest side. “That got rid of most of the smoke,” Chambers said, adding that the fire is about 95 percent out. “We’re going to let the dirt do its job.” Fayetteville firefighters were unable to battle the flames, largely because of their remote location, city officials said. Chambers fielded several complaint calls from local residents about the heavy smoke the pile produced. Nearby, at Spring Hill Elementary, HVAC mechanical units that took in outside air were shut down as a precaution and doors and other areas which also might let in outside air were shut, according to school officials. “Everything went smoothly,” said schools spokesperson Melinda Berry-Dreisbach, adding that no students reported any respiratory difficulties. The good news is that the fire is 95 percent out, Chambers said. But the fire may continue to burn for two to three months, he added. D&S officials have been very cooperative in working with the EPD to cut down the smoke from the mulch pile, Chambers said. The EPD shut down the company’s mulching and transfer station operations down, and D&S will be required to remove several other large piles of debris on site that did not catch fire, Chambers said. “He has to remove them right away,” Chambers said. EPD officials also found several solid waste violations at the company’s transfer station which will have to be addressed by D&S Environmental before it can re-open. Those violations could result in a fine or administrative action taken against D&S Environmental, Chambers noted. “We’re going to have to take a look at the whole operation,” Chambers said. None of the solid waste violations observed at the transfer station involved any contaminated material, he added. The EPD’s emergency response team has been handling the D&S site for almost a week, but the site will be turned over to regional EPD officials for compliance matters, Chambers said.
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