HOPKINSVILLE, KY (CHRISTIAN COUNTY NOW) – A representative from Hopkinsville Solid Waste Enterprise gave a presentation to the Christian County Fiscal Court, detailing common causes of fires at their 15-acre landfill and addressing community concerns.

“There’s been some wild conspiracy theories, and we just kind of wanted to clear the air a little bit on what goes into all these fires,” said HSWE General Manager Brian Silver during the April 28 meeting.

He explained that the landfill takes construction debris, green waste and waste from industrial processes. After coming to the landfill, waste is then taken to their transfer station and is transported to Beaver Dam or White Plains for disposal.

What caused the fire in January

According to Silver, the most recent fire on Jan. 22 was caused by residual tire waste that was utilized for playground mulch. He said it was a fairly small fire that was extinguished within an hour, but it resulted in a thick black smoke that drew a lot of attention to the area.

As a result of this incident, they no longer accept these particular tires due to the fire risk. Tire fires are sparked when chemical compounds become combustible after reaching around 140 degrees by being heated by the sun.

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“Landfill fires are more common than people think. Due to our proximity to town, more people notice,” he said, mentioning that these fires are very expensive for them and are harmful for relationships to their neighbors while also posing potential threats to safety. This was in response to community speculation that they profited off of these emergency situations.

Main causes of fires, combatting the issue

Overall, the number one cause of landfill fires is lithium batteries. Silver said that industry wide there is not a perfect way to dispose of them. Ideally, households would soak them in saltwater for 48 hours before trashing the batteries. Mattresses and glass are also big triggers for fires as well as some chemical reactions and hot loads.

Another issue they have had is unauthorized scavenging with people looking for things like copper. These individuals sometimes burn the coating off the fire to increase the value, which can spread quickly.

Sensors are installed on the property line of the landfill in the event of a fire emergency to monitor the air to ensure no contaminates are spreading. Hopkinsville Fire Department is prepared with necessary equipment to properly extinguish a landfill fire, with large amounts of dirt used to smother flames instead of water.

Silver said that after a landfill fire is extinguished, it sometimes continues burning underground for up to two months in some instances. This is monitored with surface temperature readings and drones that have infrared cameras.

To prevent future fires, they aim to keep up inspecting incoming loads, and they hope to purchase equipment that can continuously monitor for fires along with other investments. They are possibly looking at increasing their pricing.

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