The Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD) late Friday ordered a temporary halt to all solid waste treatment activities at a south Fulton plant following persistent complaints of illnesses resulting from a pesticide component handled at the facility just beyond the Fayette County line.

Nearly 250 area residents in the two counties have reported being sickened during the past two months from the onion-like odor of propyl mercaptan coming from the Philip Services Corp. (PSC) plant on Ga. Highway 92 south of Fairburn.

EPD Director Carol Couch late Friday issued an administrative order temporarily suspending the plant’s permit to treat solid waste.

Administrative Order 2075 states that PSC failed to follow waste acceptance requirements detailed in its solid waste handling permit, resulting in a significant impact to the surrounding community.

“Additionally, on July 25, 2006 representatives of EPD inspected the Fairburn facility and discovered violations of state environmental rules and the solid waste handling permit. The extent of your deviation from the requirements of solid waste handling permit #060-082P(DW) and the magnitude of the subsequent impact to the surrounding communities must be addressed before you receive any additional waste,” the order stated.

The order suspends the permit and requires PSC to submit a plan to improve waste acceptance procedures to avoid a reoccurrence of events that led to the inadvertent release of mercaptan.

In addition Couch mandated other actions and upgrades to the facility to mitigate the impact of mercaptan on surrounding communities.

Unknown at this time is whether waste loads previously accepted at the plant can continue the treatment process.

PSC has the option to petition a judge to appeal Couch’s administrative order, according to statements made Wednesday by EPD spokesman Ted Jackson at an intergovernmental/citizens task force meeting set up to address the various symptoms of illness reported by residents covering an estimated 40 square-mile area of south Fulton and north Fayette.

The mass of residents affected in the two-county hot zone have reported symptoms ranging from headaches, nausea and vomiting to rashes, respiratory illness and at least one case of kidney failure the victim is attributing to inhaling the mercaptan.

The chemical is added to pesticides to produce an unpleasant odor. The mercaptan released at the plant came from one shipment of waste water containing mercaptan. The water had been used to clean containers of pesticide at a manufacturing facility in Alabama.