Assistant city manager says Bushnell landfill has violated its permits
BUSHNELL, Fla. — People living in south Sumter County, including Bushnell and Lake Panasofkee, are voicing concerns about a strong odor in the area.
The city of Bushnell has not confirmed that the odor is coming from the Heart of Florida Landfill, but Assistant City Manager Morgan Wilson confirmed to Spectrum News that the local landfill has violated its permit and regulatory requirements.
What You Need To Know
- Bushnell city officials say during inspections, strong and objectionable odors were confirmed beyond the Heart of Florida Landfill property boundary line
- City officials sent out a formal notice to the landfill on June 26, informing the business about the city’s intent to revoke the business’ construction and operating permit
- A.C.M.S. INC. has 30 days to correct the violations
After various complaints, site visits and inspections conducted by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, officials with the city of Bushnell claim that the Heart of Florida Landfill has violated its permit conditions and regulatory requirements.
Wilson has confirmed that during the inspections, strong and objectionable odors were confirmed beyond the landfill property boundary, which has posed a potential nuisance and health concern for the sensitive populations.
And in an off-site complaint investigation conducted by the FDEP in May, the investigation confirmed the presence of objectionable odors detected beyond the landfills property line.
The odor has raised a lot of concerns from residents across the southern portion of Sumter County.
“At times it burns my eyes, and when I breathe, it kind of chokes me up,” Bushnell resident Daniel Etheredge said. “It takes away from what I enjoy doing, and its not only work, I ride a bike, I walk my dog in the morning first thing, and I don’t want to walk out the door and get masked by some odor that I can’t explain what it smells like or how toxic it could be.”
The city sent out a formal notice to the landfill on June 26 with its intent to revoke the construction and operating permit for the landfill that was issued in December 2020.
The notice gave A.C.M.S INC. 30 days to correct the violations. They must document the corrected actions by July 26, 2025.
Failure to do so can result in final revocation of the operating permit, possible enforcement action. Once the landfill corrects the violations, the city of Bushnell and FDEP will conduct another inspection to ensure everything is in compliance.
Spectrum News reached out the Heart of Florida Landfill for a comment and is still waiting to hear back.