Jun. 7—Lauderdale County supervisors on Monday heard from concerned residents about the county's new solid waste management plan and a proposed solid waste transfer station.

The Board of Supervisors began the process of developing a new solid waste management plan for the county in 2021, after decades of being part of a regional plan.

Board Attorney Lee Thaggard said the current plan, which covers Lauderdale, Newton, Clarke, Kemper, Neshoba, Jasper, Leake and Smith counties, was first adopted in 1993. In 2013, Thaggard said, the board began the process of revising the 20-year plan but never completed it.

"That plan was not completed until the board of supervisors restarted the process in 2021," he said.

Thaggard said the new plan is unique to Lauderdale County and includes plans and policies to manage solid waste and reduce the amount of garbage produced in the county.

"The plan itself focuses on global solid waste strategies and includes an overview of existing programs, policies and collection and disposal methods, as well as specific strategies designed to ensure the integrity and effectiveness in the areas of the solid waste management program for years to come," he said.

As part of the process to develop a new plan, the board was required to hold a public hearing to hear input from residents. On Monday, residents and business owners voiced concerns about the expansions of two landfills in Lauderdale County and the proposed construction of a solid waste transfer station in Key Brothers Industrial Park.

Southern Pipe and Supply Chairman Marty Davidson said he was concerned that the transfer station could create bad smells and attract wildlife around the company's new distribution center in the industrial park.

Davidson said he was concerned the transfer station will make it difficult for his company to retain its 65 employees at the distribution center. The station could also make it hard for the company to fill 25 more jobs it plans to create by the end of the year, he said.

Sadie Martin, who lives on Sweet Gum Bottom Road, near the current Pine Ridge landfill, said she already struggles with odors coming from the landfill. An landfill expansion included in the plan, she said, did not take residents' concerns into account.

"It's disgusting, and it's not every night, but it's enough to just reek. It's not supposed to be," she said. "We have not been considered from day one when that landfill was put there."

Multiple residents shared their concerns and encouraged the county to consider alternatives to the solid waste management plan. Board President Jonathan Wells said the board of supervisors was in "listening mode" and would consider everything residents said.

"We're in a listening mode for you to make your comments and for us to ponder on," he said.

Residents who were unable to attend Monday's hearing can still submit their comments on the plan until 5 p.m. on June 17. Comments can be dropped off at the Board of Supervisors' office on the 11th floor of the Raymond P. Davis Annex Building, 410 Constitution Ave.

Before the county's solid waste management plan can be finalized, it will have to be reviewed by the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality and get the agency's approval, Thaggard said. Once that is done, he said, the board of supervisors will have to hold a vote on whether or not the county will adopt the plan.

By law, Thaggard said, the solid waste management plan will have to outline the way Lauderdale County will collect and dispose of its garbage for the next 20 years.