Lowndes Co. files lawsuit against solid waste company

LOWNDES CO., GA (WALB) - Lowndes County leaders are going to court to try to stop a sanitation company from picking up trash for some county residents.

County leaders say Deep South Sanitation is in violation of a new ordinance that only allows Advanced Disposal to contract with county residents.

And if the cease-and-desist order is successful, the owner of Deep South Sanitation worries he'll go out of business.

Cary Scarborough owns Deep South Sanitation, a family owned and operated business he started in 2011 when he saw trash pickup problems in unincorporated Lowndes County.

In two years, he has seen his business grow with 800 Lowndes County resident contracts. But his days of picking up trash could be coming to an end.

"It could shut me down," said Scarborough.

Lowndes County served Scarborough a lawsuit last week ordering him to stop providing trash services to county residents because he is in violation of its solid waste ordinance.

The ordinance that went into effect February 1st states Advanced Disposal is the only authorized waste collection franchise in Lowndes County.

"Based on the limits on the ordinance and the contract that the county currently has with Advanced Disposal, it only allows for one company to pick up residential waste in Lowndes County," said Lowndes County Clerk, Paige Dukes.

Before the ordinance was passed several solid waste companies were able to bid on the contract. Advanced Disposal was chosen on its proposal to charge county residents about $13 a month for pick-up services. Scarborough says his company isn't big enough to take on a county-wide contract. "There's no way I could have bid against that."

And Scarborough's clients are now worried they won't be able to use his services anymore.

Deep South customer Keith Hodge said, "It bothers my wife, it bothers my friends, it bothers everyone that's in contract with Deep South Sanitation. Cary will come to your house and pick your trash up if you don't have it beside the road. I mean what other sanitation company would do that?"

"That other company, they'll still be here, I'm not going to hurt them. I don't know how many billions of dollars operation they are but Deep South is not going to hurt them," said Scarborough.

Scarborough says the majority of his clients are county residents and if the lawsuit is successful he may have to go out of business.

The suit will be heard in court June 4th.

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