Neighbors unhappy over Pilgrim's landfill dumping
By ASHLEY TOMPKINS - Tribune City Editor
Saturday, August 2, 2008 3:20 PM CDT
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| TRIBUNE photo by Ashley Tompkins
Workers busy themselves digging new pits at the Camp County landfill, located on CR 3320. The permitted landfill is being used to hold chicken byproducts that were previously sent to the company's protein conversion plant, which caught fire earlier this month and is not in operation.
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Armed with a flashlight, Scott Thompson reluctantly determined there was no other option but to crawl under his Camp County home to determine where the foul odor, which had assaulted his family for most of last week, was coming from.
The stench had not only interrupted his evening sits on his front porch, it had also managed to creep into his home.
"It was that bad. I had no idea what it was, but it was so strong that it gave me a headache and made me nauseous," Thompson said.
On Thursday, Thompson learned there was no need to crawl under his home.
"I had some neighbors stop by and they told me what was going on," Thompson said. "Pilgrim's Pride has been dumping their chicken renderings into pits about a half a mile from my home."
Since at least Monday, Pilgrim's Pride Corp. has transported most, if not all, chicken byproducts from the company's Mount Pleasant processing plant to a 20-acre regulated industrial landfill off of CR 3320 in Camp County.
The dumping is legal, according to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ).
Pilgrim's Pride received a permit for the landfill some 20 years ago, but didn't start using it until last week, after the Mount Pleasant protein conversion plant - where the chicken byproducts are usually sent - caught fire July 21.
Approximately 75 percent of the protein conversion plant was damaged in that fire, making it inoperable for the time being. Initially, the company said it was sending its chicken byproducts to third-party customers or vendors.
A recent fire at one of the third-party plants put a kink in the company's contingency plan, said Pilgrim's Pride spokesman Ray Atkinson, requiring the company to now use its Camp County landfill.
"We understand it's not the optimal situation at this moment, but we're really trying to do the best that we can under these difficult circumstances," Atkinson said.
"It's unusual for you to have your whole protein conversion plant down and then to have an issue with a third party having a problem with theirs on top of yours. It's been pretty challenging for us," he added.
Doug Willette, who lives close to the landfill, said several of his neighbors - much like Thompson - thought there were dead animals under their homes.
"This stuff has an instant stench," Willette said. "The trucks entering the site have the Pilgrim's Pride logo on the side of them. They know what they're doing. I saw at least half a dozen trucks lined up one morning at 7 and it's like that all day long. Trucks are coming in every day dumping this waste into the ground."
Atkinson said on Friday the company was approved to divert 90 to 95 percent of the byproducts that were going to the CR 3320 landfill to other permitted landfills in Camp and Titus counties.
"That should take care of the odor issue," Atkinson added.
The exact locations of those landfills were not known as of press time. Atkinson said using the landfill on CR 3320 was never a long-term solution to the problem. The changes were to go into effect late Friday or Saturday morning.
"We do understand people's concerns. We want to be a good neighbor and it is costing us a considerable amount of money to find other solutions around this," Atkinson said. "I want to stress this isn't normal business practice. This is not something we wanted to do."
TCEQ investigators were at the CR 3320 landfill Thursday after the state agency received a complaint about the odor. They toured nearby residences, but did not find the odor was strong enough to issue a violation against the company.
"We went back to the landfill and did detect odors at the landfill," explained Terry Clawson, TCEQ spokesman. "Even if you are permitted, it is a violation to allow your facility to become a nuisance, and that includes nuisance odors coming from the site."
Clawson said the company is now required to submit a plan of operation for the landfill, which includes odor control methods, safety measures, site security, policing of the site and roads for spillage.
Workers were delivering lime to the landfill on Friday to help with odor concerns, Clawson said.
"It's one thing to own the land and be able to do what you want on it, but it's another thing to do something that impacts your neighbors in an adverse way," Thompson said. "It's not neighborly to be dumping so much waste that it stinks up the countryside for over half a mile, depending on where you live. I'm right there in the line of fire."
Clawson confirmed pits at the CR 3320 landfill do not require lining when filled with the waste materials, per the 20-year permit. He said the landfill contains "good clay", which should prevent groundwater contamination, a concern for Thompson.
The TCEQ spokesman did say that similar permits today might require some form of liner or compaction of the surface under the cell, but that it also depends on the nature of the soil.
Atkinson noted two TCEQ professional geologists inspected the pits and methods. He said the clay is impermeable.
TCEQ will continue to investigate any complaints, Clawson said.
Thompson and Willette said they are glad the company is redirecting most of the waste material from near their homes, but are still upset Camp County residents had to deal with the situation in the first place.
"It is sad that the citizens of Camp County have to deal with such inconsiderate actions of such a large company. Pilgrim's Pride should be setting the example of ethical responsibility to the neighboring communities," Willette said. "It's unfortunate that we feel the need to go to the state level to get anything done about this issue."
