A waste disposal firm that has a contract to haul off solid waste for the city of Chattanooga has sued the city, saying it is severely limiting its disposal options, including at Copperhill, Tn.
Some Copperhill officials and citizens have been up in arms about solid waste shipments going to Copperhill Industries at Copperhill.
Synangro South is suing the city in Federal Court, asking for at least $150,000 in damages and an injunction blocking the city from dictating which disposal sites can be used.
The suit is also against Karen Styers, who oversees disoposal of solid waste generated at the city's huge Moccasin Bend Sewage Treatment Plant.
The suit says Synangro in August 2017 won a contract to haul solid waste from Moccasin Bend to approved sites within 75 miles of the plant. Higher rates would be in effect for beyond 75 miles.
The complaint says the city has "wrongfully micromanaged the logistics process and arbitrarily prevented Synangro from using biosoloid disposal sites entirely or otherwise imposed non-legal and non-contractural conditions on Synangro use of the deposit sites. The city's conduct materially obstructs Synangro's performance and denies Synangro any benefit of the bargain."
It also said the city has denied a fuel adjustment even though fuel prices are up.
The suit claims Ms. Styers has a "persoonal agenda" against Synangro and wants to replace the firm with a company of her own choosing.
The firm said in the contract the company was promised the use of the Copperhill Industries site at 304 Ocoee St., Copperhill with the approximate capacity of 10 loads per day - or about 12.5 percent of the annual Moccasin Bend load.
The complaint says, "From the first month of the four-year contract to the present, the city has improperly denied Snyangro the use of numerous validly permitted fields and the Copperhill site. . ."
It states, "For political or other reasons beyond the scope of the city's rights under the contract, at times, the city has categorically denied and/or unduly restricted or conditioned Synangro's commercially reasonable use of validly permitted fields/farms."
The suit says after a public meeting in Van Buren County that the city asked the firm to leave that county as soon as possible and not go back. Later, the city allowed the use of three farms in Van Buren County near the Warren County line.
Synangro said it has 22 validly permitted fields/farms in Van Buren County it should be using.
In Bledsoe County, it says certain "sensative" sites are being rejected by the city on a case-by-case basis. The firm said there are 32 validly permitted farms within Bledsoe County.
The suit said the city eventually told Synangro not to go into Hamilton County "because of public and media issues." It says, "The city even asked Synangro to ignore a farmer who kept calling the city wanting material taken to his farm in Hamilton County."
The suit said the city did change its position and allow the use of fields in Hamilton County, but it "imposes the undue restriction that Synangro must spread biosolids on the same day they arrive." The firm said the material should be spread only when it is convenient for the farmer.
The suit says there are 21 validly permitted farms in Hamilton County amounting to 2,420 acrees.
The complaint says Ms Styers from the start of the contract has been trying to get one employee fired and replaced with one of her friends.
The suit was filed by local attorneys Steve Jacoway and Robert Wheeler.