美国国家公共电台 NPR--Alabama landfill fire raises questions about how landfills are regulated

Alabama landfill fire raises questions about how landfills are regulated

Transcript¹

An Alabama landfill fire, burning for more than three months, is blanketing nearby communities with toxic² fumes³. It's raising questions about the need for more regulations around waste management.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

You know that smell when you're passing by and somebody is burning trash in their backyard? I can remember the first time I ever smelled it. It's memorable⁴. And apparently⁵, it happens on a giant scale at landfills. Thousands of landfills catch fire across the United States every year. And some of those fires last days. Some of those fires last weeks. And in Alabama, one landfill has been burning for more than three months. Mary Scott Hogan of member station WBHM checked in with the neighbors.

MARY SCOTT HODGIN, BYLINE⁶: Daniel Cash was out of town when the private landfill first caught fire.

DANIEL CASH: My mom had called. She said that there was a fire. I said, well, hopefully everything's all right. We're heading back there now.

HODGIN: It was right after Thanksgiving. Cash and his fiance drove towards their mobile home in St. Clair County, a wooded residential⁷ area north of Birmingham. As they crested⁸ the hill above their home, they saw flames.

CASH: When I come looking up that way, it was such a big area on fire up there. And there was so much smoke and what - it looked like a sunset from the colors of the fire.

HODGIN: It's not yet known how the fire started, but the smoke has continued for months.

KRISSY HARMON: It doesn't smell like a wood-burning fire at all.

HODGIN: Krissy Harmon lives in a lake house less than a half a mile from the landfill. She's taped up all the windows to try to keep the acidic fumes out.

HARMON: It makes me feel like my throat is on fire at times - like, if you've ever had strep, and it feels like razorblades cutting.

HODGIN: Residents say the smoke has caused headaches, nosebleeds, congestion⁹ and coughs. State and local officials have advised people to relocate if necessary. That option is off the table for many residents. Some don't have the resources to move. Others, like Harmon, can't just leave.

HARMON: We have a disabled child. We can't really take him just anywhere.

HODGIN: The burning landfill was supposed to only accept green waste, like trees and leaves. But state inspection¹⁰ reports show it contains unauthorized material, like rubber tires and scrap¹¹ metal. The privately¹² owned site is not regulated because Alabama doesn't regulate green waste. The state only inspected the landfill when complaints were filed. Matthew Huyser is an on-scene coordinator¹³ with the Environmental Protection Agency. He says they received reports about the fire soon after it started burning.

MATTHEW HUYSER: And throughout all of those reports, we were in contact and communication with the state of Alabama.

HODGIN: It wasn't until January that Alabama asked the EPA to conduct air sampling. That's when the agency found heightened levels of toxic chemicals and stepped in to extinguish the fire. Huyser says the agency frequently responds to these kinds of incidents.

HUYSER: And the team that we have out there is extremely experienced in a fire in a landfill of this nature.

HODGIN: We reached out to the operator of the landfill. They declined to comment for this story. The EPA plans to have the fire out by the end of March. Nationwide, the agency says it doesn't track data on landfill fires, but according to the U.S. Fire Administration, there are tens of thousands of fires every year at landfills, dumpsters and trash compactors. Robert Percival is an environmental law professor at the University of Maryland. He says federal regulations around landfills are limited and are mostly concerned with hazardous¹⁴ waste. He says the EPA leaves it up to state and local authorities to enact¹⁵ more rules.

ROBERT PERCIVAL: Well, it's kind of the story of environmental law generally. We react when there's a problem.

HODGIN: In recent years, some states have elected to tighten¹⁶ their regulations. Many residents and advocates in Alabama hope the state follows suit.

(CROSSTALK)

HODGIN: During a regulatory commission meeting in February, local attorney David Ludder urged Alabama officials to adopt more oversight¹⁷ of green waste.

DAVID LUDDER: There are probably hundreds of these landfills in Alabama that are not being regulated and that have the potential to become environmental disasters, just like the one in St. Clair County.

HODGIN: The director of the Alabama Department of Environmental Management, Lance LeFleur, wouldn't say whether or not he supports adding regulation. He says the state doesn't know how many similar sites might exist.

LANCE LEFLEUR: Well, since they're not regulated, we don't really have a way to give account of those.

HODGIN: Residents like Krissy Harmon say that answer isn't good enough.

HARMON: If we're going to have a government agency that regulates landfills, then they probably should regulate landfills.

HODGIN: Harmon says air quality has improved in recent weeks, but it depends on wind conditions. She continues to experience health effects, like headaches and a sore throat. She and many residents will always worry about possible long-term impacts. For NPR News, I'm Mary Scott Hodgin in Birmingham.

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 toxic   

adj.有毒的，因中毒引起的

参考例句：

• The factory had accidentally released a quantity of toxic waste into the sea.这家工厂意外泄漏大量有毒废物到海中。
• There is a risk that toxic chemicals might be blasted into the atmosphere.爆炸后有毒化学物质可能会进入大气层。

3 fumes   

n.(强烈而刺激的)气味，气体

参考例句：

• The health of our children is being endangered by exhaust fumes. 我们孩子们的健康正受到排放出的废气的损害。
• Exhaust fumes are bad for your health. 废气对健康有害。

4 memorable   

adj.值得回忆的，难忘的，特别的，显著的

参考例句：

• This was indeed the most memorable day of my life.这的确是我一生中最值得怀念的日子。
• The veteran soldier has fought many memorable battles.这个老兵参加过许多难忘的战斗。

5 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

6 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

7 residential   

adj.提供住宿的；居住的；住宅的

参考例句：

• The mayor inspected the residential section of the city.市长视察了该市的住宅区。
• The residential blocks were integrated with the rest of the college.住宿区与学院其他部分结合在了一起。

8 crested   

adj.有顶饰的，有纹章的，有冠毛的v.到达山顶（或浪峰）( crest的过去式和过去分词 )；到达洪峰，达到顶点

参考例句：

• a great crested grebe 凤头䴙䴘
• The stately mansion crested the hill. 庄严的大厦位于山顶。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

9 congestion   

n.阻塞，消化不良

参考例句：

• The congestion in the city gets even worse during the summer.夏天城市交通阻塞尤为严重。
• Parking near the school causes severe traffic congestion.在学校附近泊车会引起严重的交通堵塞。

10 inspection   

n.检查，审查，检阅

参考例句：

• On random inspection the meat was found to be bad.经抽查，发现肉变质了。
• The soldiers lined up for their daily inspection by their officers.士兵们列队接受军官的日常检阅。

11 scrap   

n.碎片；废料；v.废弃，报废

参考例句：

• A man comes round regularly collecting scrap.有个男人定时来收废品。
• Sell that car for scrap.把那辆汽车当残品卖了吧。

12 privately   

adv.以私人的身份，悄悄地，私下地

参考例句：

• Some ministers admit privately that unemployment could continue to rise.一些部长私下承认失业率可能继续升高。
• The man privately admits that his motive is profits.那人私下承认他的动机是为了牟利。

13 coordinator   

n.协调人

参考例句：

• The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, headed by the Emergency Relief Coordinator, coordinates all UN emergency relief. 联合国人道主义事务协调厅在紧急救济协调员领导下，负责协调联合国的所有紧急救济工作。
• How am I supposed to find the client-relations coordinator? 我怎么才能找到客户关系协调员的办公室？

14 hazardous   

adj.(有)危险的，冒险的；碰运气的

参考例句：

• These conditions are very hazardous for shipping.这些情况对航海非常不利。
• Everybody said that it was a hazardous investment.大家都说那是一次危险的投资。

15 enact   

vt.制定(法律)；上演，扮演

参考例句：

• The U.S. Congress has exclusive authority to enact federal legislation.美国国会是唯一有权颁布联邦法律的。
• For example,a country can enact laws and economic policies to attract foreign investment fairly quickly.例如一个国家可以很快颁布吸引外资的法令和经济政策。

16 tighten   

v.(使)变紧；(使)绷紧

参考例句：

• Turn the screw to the right to tighten it.向右转动螺钉把它拧紧。
• Some countries tighten monetary policy to avoid inflation.一些国家实行紧缩银根的货币政策，以避免通货膨胀。

17 oversight   

n.勘漏，失察，疏忽

参考例句：

• I consider this a gross oversight on your part.我把这件事看作是你的一大疏忽。
• Your essay was not marked through an oversight on my part.由于我的疏忽你的文章没有打分。