Debris cleanup complete at burning trash pile site near Okatie. What’s next?
The mound that once stood over 90 feet tall is now completely gone.
On Tuesday, after dump trucks hauled away the final remnants of the once-towering pile of debris near Okatie, workers with the S.C. Department of Environmental Health and Control prepared to vacate the controversial site. For months, the mound, burning internally, had released noxious fumes and an acrid odor, forced over 30 nearby residents to evacuate and brought attention from environmental groups and legislators.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, which had declared the Able Contracting fire a federal Superfund site in August, later transferred responsibilities to DHEC for extinguishing the deep-burning fire and hauling debris to nearby landfills. DHEC expects the cleanup to cost $4.5 million.
The department and its contractor removed the final load of waste from the Able Contracting site at 2:45 p.m. Monday, the agency announced.
Since the mound first started smoldering last summer, the agency has removed over 115,000 tons of debris from the site, according to its website.
Saturday and Monday, DHEC’s website wrote, “have been focused on removing the final waste from the site, grading the ground surface to restore proper drainage, filling surface water containment sumps, cleaning equipment, and preparing for site demobilization.”
Lawsuit
In August, neighbors and property owners Donald and Patricia Howze, on behalf of “all property owners similarly situated,” filed a lawsuit against Able Contracting Inc. owner Chandler Lloyd and other companies they believed had contributed to the pile of construction and demolition debris at 472 Schinger Ave.
The suit seeks class-action status, citing reports of toxins in the air and water samples harmful to neighbors.
In a response filed in court Saturday, defendants Lloyd, Able Contracting and Earlbee LLC denied the allegations and said Jasper County imposed “arbitrary and capricious orders upon them in an apparent effort to run the defendants out of business.”
The lawsuit is one of four filed against Able Contracting after the company’s pile of debris started smoldering last summer.
The fire
Residents who live near Able Contracting had complained about the smoke that billowed down Schinger Avenue and the acrid smell that lingered in the area since the pile started burning in early June. DHEC Bureau of Land and Waste Management Chief Henry Porter said the smell was due to the combination of burning organic material and plastic.
After high levels of acrolein — commonly found in cigarette smoke, according to DHEC’s website — were measured at the site, the Environmental Protection Agency declared the Able Contracting fire a federal Superfund site.
In August the 31 neighbors who live along Schinger Avenue were evacuated from their homes for 50 days while the government agencies assessed the fire and monitored air quality.
On Aug. 15, elevated levels of hydrogen cyanide were detected at the site by one air monitor and local businesses were temporarily evacuated.
The EPA paid to house the residents for 35 nights, costing more than $49,455. Jasper County paid for the residents’ temporary housing costs starting Aug. 2 until the EPA took over on Aug. 16.
In September, DHEC issued Able Contracting a “closure letter” that required the company to stop accepting any construction and demolition debris at 472 Schinger Ave. and “immediately begin the closure process for the facility.”
DHEC Bureau of Land and Waste Management Chief Henry Porter said in November that the state planned to seek reimbursement from “responsible parties” for the $4.5 million cost.
This story was originally published January 7, 2020 at 4:01 PM.
