By Gary Lloyd
The Alabama Department of Environmental Management in a letter mailed Tuesday notified Birmingham Public Works that the Eastern Area Landfill, near Trussville, had violated its stormwater permit.
According to ADEM’s letter, information submitted to the department indicates that contaminated stormwater “may be draining from the active face of the landfill, roadways, and maintenance areas into a water of the state, which is located in a low-lying wooded area east of the landfill’s property and west of Magnolia Place subdivision, prior to entering Stinking Creek. If a discharge to this water of the state is occurring, it would be considered unpermitted as it is not the receiving stream indicated in the NPDES Permit and stormwater from maintenance areas is not covered in your current permit.”
The Eastern Area Landfill is seen in the background of Magnolia Place, a 173-home Trussville subdivision.
photo courtesy of Dan Bayse
Read more about the landfill here.
ADEM requires an engineer registered and authorized to practice in Alabama to submit a report with steps that will be taken to correct the violations. It must be done within 30 days of receiving the notice of violation.
On Oct. 7, Magnolia Place Homeowners Association President Dan Bayse submitted a complaint about the landfill’s “failure to control their stormwater,” according to his complaint.
“We look at the landfill every day,” Bayse said. “In December 2012, we began documenting and making ADEM aware of the landfill’s violations of the laws and regulations. This last complaint was one of several. Everyone can see the results. This monitoring will continue.”
Scott Hughes, a spokesman for ADEM, did not immediately return a message seeking comment Wednesday afternoon.
Updated at 7:50 a.m. Thursday to correct the date of the submitted complaint by Bayse and to add comments from Bayse.
Contact Gary Lloyd at news@trussvilletribune.com and follow him on Twitter @GaryALloyd.
