Walton County Commissioner Danny Glidewell Hosts Public Meeting in Red Bay to Discuss Landfills

Walton County – May 15, 2025 – District 2 Commissioner Danny Glidewell hosted a public meeting at the Red Bay Community Center on Monday, May 12, which drew more than 70 residents. Commissioner Glidewell stated that the specific purpose of the meeting was to talk about landfills in the Red Bay area.

In attendance with Commissioner Glidewell was Environmental Services Director Billy McKee and Environmental Manager Melinda Gates.

Director McKee provided background on the permitting process associated with solid waste facilities through the Florida Department of Environmental Protection agency. He explained the differences in Landfill Classes and his understanding of active landfills located in Walton County.

McKee also briefly discussed Waste Management’s Solid Waste Collection contract and explained that they are required to dispose of all household waste in facilities located outside of Walton County. McKee also summarized County Ordinance 87-2, which restricts the transportation of solid waste from outside the county to jurisdictions inside the county.

Environmental Manager Melinda Gates provided an overview of the water quality testing program through the county’s partnership with the Choctawhatchee Basin Alliance. This includes the sampling of nutrient levels (total phosphorous,

nitrogen, and chlorophyll-a) and several physical parameters such as salinity, temperature, and dissolved oxygen. The sampling points are found throughout the bay and river systems. This data can also be found on the Choctawhatchee Basin Alliance’s website: https://basinalliance.maps.arcgis.com/apps/dashboards/79970ddfc3854b0995a8a8716eade766.

Ms. Gates noted that bacteriological testing is sampled by the Florida Department of Health at designated Public Bathing Beaches. That data can be found on the Florida Department of Health’s website https://www.floridahealth.gov/environmental-health/beach-water-quality/.

Ms. Gates recommended that property owners with private wells test their wells on a regular basis to ensure the safety of the water. Public Water Supply Organizations are required to do this for their water sources and provide it as a public document. However, there are no specific requirements for private, single-family, residential wells to be tested on a regular basis, so it is the property owner’s responsibility to perform appropriate water quality testing. Commissioner Glidewell also expressed his support in advancing the county’s water quality sampling throughout the county.

Local residents expressed concern about potential contamination of groundwater in the area due to landfill compliance issues and discussed increased truck traffic throughout the Rock Hill Road area. Others were concerned about landfills advertising as Construction and Demolition facilities that may not actually be permitted for C&D.

McKee expressed the need for involvement with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection as they are the regulating agency for landfills. He noted that complaints on any active landfill or landfill activity should be directed to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.

Commissioner Glidewell noted that it was an excellent meeting and that he was pleased to see so many members of the community in attendance and actively engaged in important local issues.