Hundreds of homeowners in South Fulton are dealing with a smelly problem, reported by WSB-TV
They say their trash service provider hasn’t picked up their garbage in weeks. Many of them say they’re having to take the trash to the landfills themselves.
Channel 2′s Ashli Lincoln found at least four metro Atlanta neighborhoods off of Old National Highway dealing with similar issues.
“We haven’t had a trash pickup since the Friday after the Fourth of July,” neighbor Tammi Smith said.
The City of South Fulton told Lincoln they had to take action after being slammed with phone calls from upset residents.
“When you get to three or four weeks of your garbage hasn’t been picked up, and it’s overflowing,” neighbor Otis Strong said.
Lincoln found that this issue isn’t isolated to South Fulton residents. Neighbors in Douglasville, Fairburn, Newnan and Coweta County have all expressed similar frustrations.
GFL Environmental is currently working to catch up on getting the trash picked up for the 22,000 residents they serve.
Residents hope the city stepping in will be a permanent fix and they won’t be back in the same situation three weeks from now.
Residents tell Channel 2 that they have been dealing with inconsistent trash pickups from their trash company, GFL Environmental, since June.
“The bottom line is, we do need to get the trash picked up,” neighbor Gloria White-Strong said.
White-Strong says what used to be a weekly pickup turned into bi-monthly to none for several weeks.
“We’re at the mercy of these people. We either pay additional money, or go to a landfill or leave it out there and make the community look bad,” Strong explained.
The City of South Fulton says they contacted GFL Environmental on behalf of the residents. They say the company blamed the delays on equipment issues related to hydraulic systems malfunctioning because of the heat compounded with staffing shortages and logistic delays related to the pandemic.
