"153 Million Gallons of Sewage, Grease Dumped"

"Sewage-filled tanker trucks have dumped 153 million gallons of human waste and restaurant grease at a Pelion disposal site that lies in one of the most vulnerable areas for groundwater pollution in South Carolina.

The discharge amount, revealed recently by state regulators, shows for the first time the extent of dumping that has occurred at the C.E. Taylor disposal ground since it received a state permit to open in 1989. At 287 acres, the site rivals the largest septic tank dumps in the Carolinas.

The company’s disposal practices have contaminated groundwater beneath the site, state regulators say, and have come under increasing scrutiny since a toxin was found in three nearby private wells last year. The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control finds itself trying to explain why the sewage dump was permitted in the first place, given the site’s geology — and deciding whether the site should close."

Sammy Fretwell reports for the Columbia, SC, State February 20, 2011.