Anne Snabes / The Meridian StarCapt. Timothy Brent Moore, the commanding officer of NAS Meridian, speaks to the Lauderdale County Board of Supervisors on Monday. Capt. Moore said he is concerned that vultures frequenting the Pine Ridge Landfill area would flock to a proposed waste transfer station area.

Representatives of Naval Air Station Meridian and area businesses spoke out against a proposed waste transfer station at a public hearing on Monday.

JWC Environmental, LLC would like to build a transfer station at G.V. Sonny Montgomery Industrial Park. The station would accept recyclable material and other waste, which would  then be transported to a landfill in Choctaw County, Alabama.

For the site to be built, the Lauderdale County Board of Supervisors would have to amend its Solid Waste Management Plan. The Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality would then have to approve the amendment.

Harrison Cook, an owner of JWC Environmental, spoke about the benefits of the transfer station during the hearing on Monday. The station would serve as a recycling center for Lauderdale County residents. Cook said that expanding recycling in Lauderdale County could help the area attract large businesses and could lower the cost of waste disposal in the county.

“Our services and vision will make our community cleaner and a better place to live,” he said.

Cook also addressed the concerns that NAS Meridian officials had previously expressed in a letter to the board of supervisors. In the letter, the officials noted that the odor of waste could attract vultures. Cook said that the transfer station would be in an enclosed building, which would have a filtration system to neutralize bad odors.

NAS Meridian concerns

Capt. Timothy Brent Moore, the commanding officer of NAS Meridian, told the board during the hearing that he is concerned that vultures frequenting the Pine Ridge Landfill area would flock to the waste transfer station area.

This would cause the vultures to fly closer to the NAS Meridian landing pattern. Vultures have struck naval jets in the past.

“We have had 15 vulture strikes over the last decade,” Moore said.

Commander Dustin Worley, an aviation safety officer at NAS Meridian, told The Meridian Star in February that encountering a vulture while flying poses a significant safety risk for pilots. He said the jets are training aircraft and only have one engine.

“If one of those animals hits in the wrong spot, it can completely disable the aircraft and cause a crash and the air crew to have to eject,” Worley said. “So it could be pretty catastrophic to these aircraft.”

Moore said that if the transfer station was located further south, it would not bring vultures close to the NAS Meridian landing pattern.

District 1 Supervisor Jonathan Wells asked if the transfer station could be built at another location. Cook, of JWC Environmental responded that it possibly could. He would prefer the transfer station to be near an industrial park, as that would help businesses in the park to recycle.

Business concerns

Several business leaders voiced opposition to the location of the transfer station, including Robert Fitzpatrick, director and general manager of the Lockheed Martin Meridian facility.

He said the Lockheed facility is right next to the location of the proposed transfer station, and worried that vulture droppings could cause damage to his company’s products. He also noted that vultures could be a risk to NAS Meridian aircraft.

“It’s not just dangerous for the naval aviators; it’s dangerous for the people on the ground,” he said.

Fitzpatrick also said that the transfer station could lead to more rodents at his facility, which could chew through wires.

Marty Davidson, chairman of the board of Southern Pipe & Supply, also voiced opposition to the location of the transfer station. He said his company is concerned about the smell of garbage and other environmental problems that it may pose.

“We ask the board to not put this waste transfer station in the Sonny Montgomery Industrial Park,” he said.

There is a 10 day period after the public hearing in which anyone can submit questions or comments about the proposed station. The board will have to make a decision on the matter within 90 days of the hearing.