SUMTER COUNTY, Fla. -- The conversation surrounding the odor coming from a Bushnell landfill continued in Sumter County Tuesday night as residents called for the closure of the Heart of Florida Landfill.
Bushnell has given A.C.M.S., Inc., the operator of the landfill, a notice of intent to revoke construction and operating permits after inspections from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection found they violated their permit.
But for residents in Lake Panasoffkee, who experience the worst of the odor and toxin, they were vocal at Tuesday's Sumter County meeting, saying that the damage is already done.
"My mental health is already too bad; they can't fix it. I'm already stuck in that mode," shared Lake Panasoffkee resident Andrew Leibenguth. "And now every time I smell that I can't sleep, in my house, it's in my bed, in my sheets. I just can't ... stop it."
As a veteran, Leibenguth says that he has endured a lot of terrible things in his life but the impacts of the landfill's odor has forced him into conditions he was not ready for.
"This is what I use, 40 bucks, $40 on Amazon for a wind meter, a gas mask, 40 bucks and it's all for the odors," Leibenguth said.
These same concerns were also expressed at Bushnell's Commission Meeting Monday night.
Sumter County District 2 Commissioner and Vice Chairman Andy Bilardello attended the meeting and shared some of his thoughts.
"I know a lot of these people out there. I live in the city of Wildwood but there's nights that I can smell the dump and I'm maybe 10-12 miles away," explained Bilardello. "These people are 3-4 miles away and they're having to deal with this constantly."
Which is why Leibenguth pleaded with county commissioners to close the landfill.
"Take care, take care of us. I'm serious, please! We're limited to talk about this stuff," Leibenguth exclaimed.
But since the jurisdiction of the landfill falls under the city of Bushnell, it leaves the county with not a lot of power to step in.
Bilardello, however, feels that more can and should be done.
"And we can't keep kicking the can down the road and saying, 'Hey well, that's the city of Bushnell's problem, not our problem.' Personally you know I was in law enforcement for 40 years there's always something we can do," Bilardello said. "One thing when I was a police chief I used to tell my guys 'Don't ever tell a resident oh there's nothing we can do there's always something we can do.'"
Sumter County commissioners are asking those impacted to continue to complain to the city of Bushnell, A.C.M.S., Inc., and to continue to reach out to their elected officials because the more noise they make, the better the chance there is for this problem to quickly resolved.
If A.C.M.S., Inc., doesn't resolve the issues at the landfill in 30 days and the problems persist, the landfill will be shut down.