Latest news with #EnvironmentalProtectionDivision
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
How Illegal Tire Dumps Are Harming Atlanta's Black Neighborhoods
Chad Livsey has spent the past seven years removing improperly discarded furniture and other hard-to-recycle litter from Atlanta neighborhoods, but he says he has yet to encounter a dumping site as daunting as this one in southeast Atlanta. The Snellville native commemorated Earth Day by responding to a tip he received one year ago about the dense woodlands near the condemned Forest Cove apartments in Thomasville Heights, where mounds of used tires have been dumped amongst the greenery. Livsey estimates that the more than 400 tires he has removed from the site represent less than a quarter of the sum that remain strewn throughout the forest. 'Imagine thousands of tires over acres,' said Livsey, who calls the dump site one of America's most egregious. 'It's been done for generations, and you can just see this is environmental racism.' Illegal dumping is a persistent issue in predominantly Black neighborhoods in south and west Atlanta, according to residents who say their communities have seen little relief from the problem that poses environmental and health hazards. Aside from dragging down a community's property value, improperly discarded waste can contaminate soil and drinking water. Illegally dumped tires collect water, which allows rodents and mosquitoes to harbor and potentially spread disease, according to Sara Lips, spokesperson for Georgia's Environmental Protection Division. Livsey decided to create the solution he wanted to see via the Chad Livsey Project, a nonprofit he founded in 2020 to advocate against and tackle illegal dumping and litter around Atlanta. With the help of volunteers, the organization removed more than 28,000 pounds of waste from communities in and around Atlanta last year, according to its website. The group's efforts are vital in Atlanta, a city that does not accept tires through its trash collection programs for residents. Kimberly Rankins, communications director of the city's Department of Public Works, said tires must be disposed of differently than other types of trash due to its classification as a hard-to-recycle item. 'Tires are a completely different beast,' said Livsey. 'They leach so much [that] they break down into the soil. It is a major issue. It's not just Atlanta. … Countrywide, we don't know what to do with tires.' Livsey said he moved to New York in 2010 after graduating from Georgia State University. Upon returning to Atlanta seven years later, he remembers being saddened to find parts of the city covered in litter. 'My hometown was getting trashed,' he said. 'I didn't wait for politicians or anybody else — I just started picking up and cleaning streets by myself.' His nonprofit grew through community support and donations, which Livsey said allows volunteers to respond to cleanup requests, bag trash, and contact city employees to recycle or otherwise dispose of it. Livsey, who now lives in Summerhill, said he's noticed through his work that Black communities are more likely to experience litter problems due to environmental racism, poverty, and disinvestment. 'In doing this work, you see all the shortcomings of the government, of corporations,' he said. 'We did a cleanup in Grove Park off of Bankhead. … Our bags sat there for months.' Khalifa Lee, chair of Neighborhood Planning Unit H — which includes Adamsville, Bankhead, and adjacent neighborhoods — said residents frequently complain about illegal dumping in community meetings and report that surveillance cameras in known dumping spots often fail to operate properly. Lee said efforts to clear local dumping sites have been futile, as they quickly reaccumulate litter. 'It's daunting how they've been ensuring that we don't see the quality and beauty of our community,' said Lee. Rankins, with Atlanta's Department of Public Works, said city initiatives like the Solid Waste Education and Enforcement Team provide weekly monitoring of known dump sites to provide education and enforcement on litter, and Public Works officials monitor surveillance cameras in an attempt to deter illegal dumping in known problem areas. Rankins added that the city collects tires from residents at a Greenbriar Mall recycling event the third Saturday of every month. She also noted that the Center for Hard to Recycle Materials accepts tires but requires an appointment and a fee. Lips said recycling tires can be costly, which can result in people choosing to illegally dump them instead. Livsey said he submitted a complaint to the Environmental Protection Division to have the remaining tires at the Thomasville Heights dumping site recycled. He acknowledged that other city initiatives like the expansion of walking trails and parks can help increase community pride and beautification, but he insisted that there aren't enough city programs for litter cleaning. 'We clean up every area that we can,' said Livsey. 'But for years, there was no funding. I was doing this by myself. … You have to become a super citizen, that's just what it is.' The post How Illegal Tire Dumps Are Harming Atlanta's Black Neighborhoods appeared first on Capital B News - Atlanta.
Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Annual Georgia burn ban just 2 days away. Here's what you need to know
Starting May 1, 54 Georgia counties will be part of a ban on open burning. The state's Environmental Protection Division said this has been the norm since the summer of 2005. EPD said the burn ban means citizens and businesses are not allowed to burn yard and land-clearing debris from May 1 to Sept. 30, in addition to the statewide ban on burning household garbage. Recreational activity like setting up a campfire or grilling are exempt from the burn ban, though. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] TRENDING STORIES: ISIS member accused of 'inciting' New Orleans terror attack arrested in Iraq SCOTUS hearing case of Atlanta family whose home was mistakenly raided by the FBI 2 women stole nearly $500,000 from their former job, Dunwoody police say 'Smoke from open burning can impact both the respiratory and cardiovascular systems, especially in children, elderly people, and people with preexisting conditions. When open burning creates smoky conditions, reducing exposure is important for everyone's health," James Boylan, Chief of the EPD Air Protection Branch, said. The following counties will have a burn ban in effect on May 1, organized by region: Mountain District Office (Atlanta): 404-362-2671 – Carroll, Clayton, Coweta, DeKalb, Douglas, Fayette, Fulton, Gwinnett, Heard, Henry, Rockdale and Spalding counties. Northeast District Office (Athens): 706-369-6376 – Banks, Barrow, Butts, Clarke, Hall, Jackson, Jasper, Madison, Morgan, Newton, Oconee, Putnam and Walton counties. East Central District Office (Augusta): 706-667-4343 – Columbia and Richmond counties. West Central District Office (Macon): 478-751-6612 – Bibb, Crawford, Houston, Jones, Lamar, Monroe, Peach, Pike, Twiggs, Upson, Meriwether and Troup counties. Mountain District Office (Cartersville): 770-387-4900 – Bartow, Catoosa, Chattooga, Cherokee, Cobb, Dawson, Floyd, Forsyth, Gordon, Haralson, Lumpkin, Paulding, Pickens, Polk and Walker counties. If you plan to burn 'hand-piled, natural vegetation collected on-site' after the burn ban is over, permits are no longer needed. However, EPD said there are new rules for it to ensure safety: Burn location must be no less than 25 feet from any woodlands, forestland or field that contains brush, grass, or other flammable material. Burn location must be no less than 50 feet from structures, which includes homes, outbuildings, sheds, and barns. Burning must take place between sunrise and sunset. Person responsible must attend burning at all times until the fire is completely extinguished and there is no risk for burning to escape control. Person responsible must take reasonable and necessary precautions to prevent fire escape or spread from the original location. [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- General
- Yahoo
City says they have made ‘significant strides' in improving wastewater treatment plant
City officials say they have made 'significant strides' in improving conditions at a wastewater treatment plant blamed for recent harmful spills. They offered a media tour Wednesday of the R.M. Clayton Water Reclamation Center, which has been the target of state regulators and environmentalists. In February, the state Environmental Protection Division fined the city $290,817 for violations at the facility, which is nearly 100 years old. The agency said those violations led to numerous spills of improperly treated wastewater into the Chattahoochee River, polluting it with unsafe levels of E. coli, ammonia, and fecal matter. 'Over the past months, R.M. Clayton staff and contractors have made significant strides,' said Peter Aman, Chief Strategy Officer for the city of Atlanta. TRENDING STORIES: Convicted killer mistakenly released from Clayton County Jail Frontier flight from Atlanta lands in D.C. after 'beeping noise' in cargo hold University of Alabama senior killed when tree falls on remote north Georgia campsite He said the improvements have produced results, with the facility not exceeding E. coli limits since March 2024. Greg Eyerly, the city's Commissioner of the Department of Watershed Management, said equipment has been replaced and repaired in the facility's clarifiers. Those are the settling tanks where solids – the sludge and scum – are separated from the wastewater. Eyerly said the improvements will help prevent spills of poorly treated wastewater. 'We have aging infrastructure that needs to be replaced,' he said. 'That's costly, and it's going to require investment. Technology's changing. We need to implement that technology as we rebuild our treatment plants.' Officials say the city has also hired more staff at the facility and installed additional chemical scrubber odor control systems. Eyerly, who recently moved from Houston, said Atlanta is not alone. 'The issues and challenges that we're facing in Atlanta are very, very similar to other major metropolitan areas,' he said. 'That's just typical of what you'll see in a lot of treatment plans – this ongoing replacement of equipment as it ages.' The Chattahoochee Riverkeeper has filed a federal lawsuit against the city, claiming the plant has violated the Clean Water Act. Its executive director, Jason Ulseth, declined to comment on the improvements at the facility because of the pending litigation. He said he is scheduled to tour the plant next week. 'The city continues its work on R.M. Clayton, including making the necessary investments to protect the Chattahoochee River,' Aman said. 'The city cares deeply about the Chattahoochee River and is willing to engage with any interested stakeholders on improvements to the river.',
