By Hannah Curran, Editor
PELL CITY — The St. Clair County Commission declared the Moody environmental landfill fire an emergency situation during an emergency called meeting at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 3, at the Pell City Courthouse
St. Clair County Commission (Photo by Hannah Curran)
“St. Clair County has 100,000 people, and we’re proud to represent that 100,000 people the best way we can; we know that people are suffering,” St. Clair County Commission Chairman Stan Bateman said.
Bateman explained that this will be a process, and will be a difficult process at that.
“I apologize to you, as being a member of an elected body all these years, that our government is full of bureaucracy and red tape,” Bateman said. “That’s something that holds us up when we really need to act quickly.”
Bateman said part of the commission job is “to take the heat and hopefully find a solution.”
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The St. Clair County Commission entered into an executive session for 15 minutes to discuss actions that could lead to litigation. After returning from the executive session, the board voted and unanimously approved a resolution to declare the existence of emergency conditions.
“This resolution literally opens the door for St. Clair County to legally get on the property, to legally put the fire out, and to legally spend government money on that property,” Bateman said. “Those hoops had to be jumped through because they were illegal until Senator Lance Bell worked with some people in Montgomery, ADEM, and other people in our county. We feel confident that we can take action.”
Bateman said that the St. Clair County engineer is already working on some requests for proposals (RFPs) for people who can extinguish the fire and has received some quotes.
“I think some good things will come out of what we’re doing,” Bateman said. “We’ll be able to tighten up some of these regulations, and you’ll see more definition of what the responsibility of the county is and what the authority of the county commission is.”
The resolution states on Jan. 3, 2023, the County Commission of St. Clair County found that due to a landfill fire located at 1317 Annie Lee Road, a condition of extreme peril to life and property exists in St. Clair County.
“The fire exists primarily, if not entirely, underground, creating additional and unknown risk to responders,” the resolution states. “St. Clair County does not have firefighting authority, resources, or expertise; however, St. Clair County recognizes the health, safety, and welfare of its citizens in the vicinity of the fire is jeopardized.
“St. Clair County recognizes the City of Moody, the City of Trussville, the Alabama Forestry Commission, and various other municipal and volunteer departments and agencies have put forth tremendous effort to preserve life and property, and their service and dedication is lauded by St. Clair County and appreciated by the citizens and residents in the vicinity of the fire.
Related Story: Meeting about Moody’s environmental landfill fire to be held on Tuesday in Pell City
“Pursuant to the above and in accordance with State law, the County Commission declares the fire to be a threat to person and property and declares that emergency conditions presently exist as a direct and proximate result thereof. It has now been found that local resources are unable to cope with the effects of said emergency or effectively mitigate the ongoing conditions giving rise to the same.”
A copy of the declaration has been forwarded to Governor Kay Ivey through the State Director of Emergency Management with a request for State and Federal Assistance, and that she proclaims a state of emergency to exist in St. Clair County.
The resolution states that the County EMA Director is hereby designated as the authorized representative for coordination, and the County Chairman is hereby authorized to execute for and on behalf of St. Clair County, a public entity established under the laws of the State of Alabama, this declaration and to solicit the assistance/intervention of state and federal agencies under the Disaster Relief Act (Public Law 100-707) or as may otherwise be available from the President’s Disaster Relief Fund or any State Funds available for mitigation of the emergency conditions described herein.
Moody Brush Fire (Photo courtesy of the Moody Fire Department)
“It is further resolved that without assuming responsibility for the mitigation of the fire, St. Clair County will provide administrative or professional support as it has available and as may be required for the purpose of administering and/or coordinating State and Federal assistance,” the resolution states.
Concerns about air quality have already been circulating, and Bateman explained that there are monitors that measure the particulate matter in the air but do not explain what the matter is.
St. Clair County Attorney James Hill said some people have asked that the landfill be shut down.
“Unfortunately, or fortunately, however the public may see this, St. Clair County, along with the vast majority of other counties in the state of Alabama, doesn’t have zoning authority,” Hill said. “We don’t permit landfills. We don’t regulate environmental laws. These are all things done by other agencies and, simply put, we don’t have the authority to do any of those things.”
Related Story: UPDATE: Moody brush fire activity decreases, smoke continues
There was not a public comment section during the meeting, but after the meeting adjourned, the county commission waited and heard comments from the public. Members of the community asked if temporary living arrangements would be created for individuals who are affected by the fire.
“We will be working with another agency called the State Department of Emergency Management and our local emergency management,” Bateman said. “So we might not have a local environmental manager, but we do have a local emergency management, so if there are funds for housing – like a tornado occurred and they bring in temporary housing – we’ll look at that and see if there’s an opportunity for that.”
After a question was asked about the thermal mapping of the area, Hill reminded the public that the county commission cannot and will not seek to usurp the authority of the Alabama Department of Environmental Management, which is the sole entity and agency that governs environmental laws in the state.
“So this is environmental issues, and they’re legitimate issues, and this commission understands they’re legitimate, but any investigations into environmental issues and mitigation of those things and enforcement of those laws do not fall under the purview of the commission and cannot,” Hill said. “ADEM will be included in the conversations.”
Many elected officials along with many individuals affected by the fire filed into the room for the emergency meeting. (Photo by Hannah Curran)
Another audience member explained to the county commission that the air quality was so bad that families have had to leave their homes.
“We have a sense of empathy and sympathy about that situation,” Bateman said. “We’re gonna address it as fast as we can.”
Audience members asked if the county commission had any legal resources against ADEM, but Bateman said that they do not.
Related Story: UPDATE: No changes in Moody fire activity, heavy smoke activity continues
“Individuals do have a way on a civil case, but the county commission does not,” Bateman said.
Hill said that the county commission has begun coordinating with agencies working on the fire to try and find a solution to the problem.
“When we leave this meeting today, I don’t think we will have the answer,” Hill said. “As the chairman alluded to, our county engineer has already been working on what is the right answer, along with the Moody fire marshal and our EMA director. What’s the right answer to mitigate the situation? What’s the answer that’s going to cause the least exposure, that’s going to effectively put this out in the quickest manner without creating any unintended ancillary detrimental effects?”
Hill explained that after a short period of time, the county engineer will be able to bring back to the public a recommendation for how this emergency can be mitigated. The next step is taking those recommendations to the state of Alabama with what they believe to be a viable plan and how to fund that plan.
There is not a set date that a plan will be presented to help resolve the problem.
