Lady’s Island residents vexed by persistent odor in their neighborhood
It starts in the early morning. As residents of a Lady’s Island neighborhood wake up, many hop in their pickup trucks and begin the drive to work, they’re greeted by a smell that some describe as sulfur and others as septic.
After years of an occasional wofting of a strong, pungent smell permeating the neighborhood and its homes, the issue has grown.
The issue has prompted residents to file reports with the South Carolina Department of Environmental Services. The agency has opened an investigation into the issue, according to spokesperson Laura Renwick.
Resident Pam Holbrook has lived in her Lady’s Island home for 23 years. She’s dealt with the smell the whole time she’s lived there. She says recently it’s gotten worse. Holbrook said the smell prevents her from drinking her coffee outside in the mornings and worsens her migraines.
The smell, which residents describe as either a sulfur odor or something from a septic tank, is at its worst in the early morning hours. It then dissipates through the day and returns again in the morning.
Not far from the Holbrook residence, Sean Burns has lived in his home for 14 years. He would notice the stench occasionally, on really “dense, dewy days,” but in the past three years it’s gotten considerably worse. Sometimes, the smell permeates into his house.
Burns said that when the odors become particularly bad, his neighbors will joke that “the dump is dumping.”
Just north of the subdivision sits Barnwell Landfill, which is owned by Coastal Waste and currently accepts construction and demolition materials. Many residents in the neighborhood point to the landfill as the cause of the smell.
In a statement from Patti Hamilton, a spokesperson for Coastal Waste & Recycling, she said the company does not believe they are the cause of the odor. Additionally, the landfill’s operator has increased the amount of material used to cover the landfill. This activity is designed to reduce the amount of odor emited from the area. Hamilton also said that the landfill is “routinely inspected” by DES, most recently in mid-September, and the site has no violations.
According to the DES’s Renwick, the agency’s regional office has received calls regarding the smell and they are investigating the issue. Renwick was unable to confirm that the landfill is part of the investigations and said that “odors can stem from a wide range of sources in the environment.”
This story was originally published September 17, 2025 at 1:15 PM.
