A Marlboro County group known for its fierce opposition to a proposed landfill in Wallace is facing its own opposition in the form of a federal lawsuit filed against it by the company trying to establish the so-called “megadump.”
The North Carolina group MRR Southern LLC filed a federal lawsuit in Florence against Citizens for Marlboro County and is seeking damages related to what MRR lawyers call a “smear campaign” launched against the company by the group.
MRR obtained a preliminary determination from the state Department of Health and Environmental Control that their plans were consistent with the Marlboro County Solid Waste Management Plan, according to federal court documents filed in November by MRR attorneys.
But the dump was highly-contested by Marlboro County residents and the proposal for the project was denied in 2009 by Marlboro County Council and the county planning commission, which serves in an advisory capacity.
During the two-year debate waged over the landfill, MRR alleges, Citizens for Marlboro County said MRR operates landfills in an unsanitary manner, similar to Kersey Valley Landfill in High Point, N.C.
The lawsuit also states the group said MRR operates the Kersey Valley facility when that landfill is actually operated by The City of High Point.
The citizens group distributed information that said “MRR’s screening fails to prevent syringes, condoms and medical and human waste from getting into the landfill, thereby exposing your child getting off the school bus to these hazards,” according to court documents.
MRR lawyers said the group spread false information, stating MRR waste haulers would increase traffic and destroy roads that county residents would have to pay to have restored.
The lawsuit also stated the Citizens for Marlboro County group falsely told residents MRR trucks would create mud, making roads slick and disastrous for “soccer moms.”
Furthermore, the group said the landfill would cause “psychological damage and trauma similar to that imposed by the FBI and the U.S. military to unnerve criminals and terrorists,” according to court documents.
Belvin Sweatt, chairman of Citizens for Marlboro County, said the group met this week to discuss the lawsuit and isn’t deterred by the case against them.
“They are taking it in stride and they are stronger than ever,” Sweatt said of the group’s members. “We were really not surprised when we saw it. We were expecting it.”
Citizens for Marlboro County has obtained legal representation in the matter through the S.C. Environmental Law Project based in Georgetown.
MRR has demanded a jury trial and is represented by Columbia attorneys James M. Griffin and Richard Harpootlian.
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