Science

St. Clair County Declares State of Emergency to Address Smoldering Landfill in Moody

In an emergency meeting Tuesday, the St. Clair County Commission declared a state of emergency to deal with the underground landfill fire that’s been smoldering for more than a month, annoying and aggravating residents from as far as 30 miles away. The commission action put wheels in motion for a plan to put out the fire at the environmental landfill in Moody and seek funds through the state to pay for it. Fighting the fire is complicated by the fire burning underground and then breaking through at multiple locations on the surface. A packed commission chamber saw the panel go into executive session to be briefed on possible litigation that could come as a result of the action. After 15 minutes away from the crowd and then instruction from County Attorney Jim Hill, the commission unanimously approved the resolution to address the matter. Read more.

COVID on the Rise in Alabama

COVID-19 has been creeping upward in Alabama during the holidays. The new daily average of COVID-19 cases in Alabama increased by 27% in the two weeks leading up to Dec. 21, the last day for which complete information was available. Read more.

Underground Landfill Fire Still Contained but Smoke Persists

James Mulkey was among some folks from Moody who went shopping for Christmas gifts Tuesday. As they returned, they happened by the White’s Chapel area, where a landfill fire has been the source of smoke since November. Because of the wind, they weren’t greeted by the smell of smoke. But this too will pass. “If you smelled anything at all, it was very, very little,” said Mulkey, the Moody fire marshal. “I imagine this morning with the change in wind direction that that (smell) got a lot worse at that same intersection.” The Moody Fire Department updated residents about the status of the landfill fire that is producing smoke that’s irritating residents as far as 20 miles away. That department’s Facebook post said no change in fire activity has been noted and all burning is still contained within the fire break. “Smoke continues to discharge from both the heavy fuels on top of the ground and from holes and cracks from the underground portion of the fire,” the post read. “The smoke does seem to be a little heavier than in previous days on the north end of the incident.” Read more.

Workers Across America, and in Alabama, Break Their Silence on Decades of Asbestos Exposure

New accounts from workers contrast sharply with what chemical giants have said on the record about worker safety at their facilities. At an Olin plant outside of McIntosh, Alabama, workers recall decades of continuing asbestos exposure. When LaTunja Caster started working at the Olin Corp. chemical plant outside of McIntosh, Alabama, she had no idea that asbestos was used in the production process. But when she became a union safety representative around 2007, she started to pay attention. In certain parts of the plant, “you would see it all the time,” she said. “You definitely breathed it in.”

Six other people who worked in the plant, some with experiences as recent as this year, echoed her recollections about exposure to the potent mineral that has long been known to cause deadly cancers like mesothelioma and a chronic lung condition called asbestosis that can make it difficult to breathe.

Though designated asbestos workers were given protective gear and had special training, electricians, millwrights and general maintenance staff got no comparable protection even though they, too, were exposed, they told ProPublica. Read more.

Landfill Fire Annoying Residents More Than 20 Miles Away ‘Contained,’ Evacuated Residents Allowed to Return

Residents of five homes in Moody that had been evacuated were given the “all clear” to return home as the Moody Fire Department determined that a landfill fire that has been burning largely underground has been contained. The fire is burning at Blackjack Road from Carrington Lake Parkway to Annie Lee Road at a landfill that disposes of trees and other debris. Persons living as far away as Birmingham’s Crestwood neighborhood complained of smelling smoke and even having smoke invade their homes. When material burns underground, there is a cavity and soil falls away. “It can create a fissure or a hole and then we have smoke or steam coming up through that,” Moody Fire Marshal James Mulkey said. “Then the smoke is going to come up into the air. You can smell this for miles.” The above-ground part of the fire has been plainly visible from several miles away. Read more.

Alabama’s Hunting 101 Workshops Target Newcomers — and Conservation Dollars

State leaders hope to reverse a decades-long decline in hunting participation rates and secure more funding for wildlife restoration. Read more.

Alabama Health Providers Warn of Unusually Early Flu Activity

In recent weeks, outpatient providers across Alabama have reported high levels of influenza-like illness, with kids facing the highest risk of hospitalization. Read more.

Birmingham to Get Federal Help to Improve Stormwater System, Reduce Flooding

Birmingham will receive federal assistance to assess and improve the city’s stormwater drainage systems. The city is one of 20 in the nation — out of more than 100 applicants — to receive a technical assistance grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. “There’s no direct funding that will be given to the city,” Kim Speorl, a zoning administrator for the city, told councilors Tuesday. “We will be given a representative who will work with our stormwater and our floodplain and hazard mitigation department to identify projects to apply for FEMA grant funding in the future.” Read more.

Proliferating Wildfires Poison Public Health Across the Country

As wildfires continue to burn in parts of the United States, state public health officials and experts are increasingly concerned about residents’ chronic exposure to toxin-filled smoke. This year has seen the most wildfires of the past decade, with more than 56,000 fires burning nearly 7 million acres nationwide, according to the National Interagency Fire Center. While the total area burned is less than in some recent years, heavy smoke has still blanketed countless communities throughout the country. Climate change is causing more frequent and severe wildfires, harming Americans’ health, pointed out Dr. Lisa Patel, deputy executive director at the Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health, which raises awareness about the health effects of climate change. “The data we have is very scary,” she said. “We are living through a natural experiment right now — we’ve never had fires this frequently.” Patel sees the effects of wildfires in her work as a practicing pediatrician at Stanford Medicine Children’s Health, treating more women and underweight and premature infants at the neonatal intensive care unit when wildfires rage in Northern California. As researchers focus on the public health impact of wildfire smoke, state health and environmental officials across the country have had to issue more air quality notices and provide guidance and shelter for residents struggling during periods of heavy wildfire smoke. And as experts have found, this issue isn’t isolated to the West Coast — it hurts more residents in the Eastern U.S. Studies show that chronic exposure to wildfire smoke can cause asthma and pneumonia, and increase the risk for lung cancer, stroke, heart failure and sudden death. The very old and very young are most vulnerable. Particulates in wildfire smoke are 10 times as harmful to children’s respiratory health as other air pollutants, according to a study in Pediatrics last year. Read More Republished from Stateline, an initiative of The Pew Charitable Trusts

New Mental Health Crisis Center Aims to Interrupt Revolving Door of Jail and ER Visits

The new clinic in Jefferson County will offer short-term crisis care to people who might otherwise wait hours at a hospital or wind up in jail. Read more.