Local organizations and community members are urging the Alachua County Commission to prevent the expansion of a landfill they say is threatening public health in a southeast Gainesville neighborhood.
The landfill, owned by Southeast Landholdings Inc., is over 48 acres and lies across the street from historic Boulware Springs City Park and the Alachua County Sweetwater Preserve. Residents of the neighborhood have expressed their concerns at recent county meetings, saying the smell is awful and that dust and debris cover their yards and homes. Now, the landfill may be on track to expand from 35 feet tall to 70 feet.
“The residents of Southeast Gainesville have been subjected to the noise, dust, and pollution from this landfill for more than 50 years,” a press release from Sierra Club reads. “This is an environmental injustice that our community must make right.”
Southeast Landholdings Inc. had a Special Use Permit (SUP) that expired at the end of January. Since then, the company has filed for a legislative extension of the permit that would allow it to double the landfill in size as well as circumvent any public hearing process before the county.