FULTON COUNTY, Ga. — Although the owner of an unlicensed landfill in the city of South Fulton has been given additional time to put out an underground fire that has been burning for seven months, residents have sent a letter to Gov. Brian Kemp asking him to intervene.
According to the Associated Press, Tandy Ross Bullock, owner of the landfill southwest of Hartsfield Jackson International Airport, was told in late March that he had two more months to stop the fire.
The letter was forwarded to 11Alive News by South Fulton city councilwoman Naeema Gilyard on Tuesday, and says that according to the 2019 Fulton County land use map, the area the property is on is zoned as R5 residential large tracts.
Areas under this zoning classification are designated for single-family homes or -- if initiated before March 7, 1990 -- agricultural and farming use. In other words, older farms which are essentially "grandfathered" into existence on larger properties.
The letter says that the Fulton County land use map currently classifies the property as R1 residential, which "encompasses lands devoted to residential areas and closely related uses." This also includes primarily single-family homes.
Unpermitted landfill burns in Fairburn
The letter indicates that county records reflected a classification of M2 heavy industrial, which includes manufacturing, fabricating, processing, distributing, research, offices associated with industrial use, extraction, terminal and warehousing.
The residents ask, in the letter why the change was made, especially within the middle of a residential area.
According to the AP, Fulton County officials have been fighting with Bullock over the unlicensed landfill since 2007. Bullock was arrested on charges of illegal burning for a third time in February 2019.
The EPA says the smoke that has covered the area near the landfill along the Fairburn - South Fulton border area may cause headaches and respiratory irritation.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.