Since January, the Canton Health Department has received more than 600 complaints about the stink of old garbage coming from the Countywide Solid Waste Landfill. This week the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency declared the landfill a public nuisance and has given landfill owner Republic Services until December 15 to clean it up. EPA Spokesman Mike Settles says air samples taken in June showed no public health risk. But the problem hasn't gone away. Settles says one possible source could be underground fires.
Mike Settles: The landfill believes the odors may be emanating from an area where aluminum dross was disposed of some years ago. These are both areas that USEPA has some expertise in and we are asking them to take a look at the situation.
State officials are also asking the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry to rule out any threats to public health. He says if landfill owners don't meet the deadline, they could face fines or a loss of their license. Karen Schaefer, 90.3.