The City of Brundidge continues to battle to keep the Brundidge Landfill open and for it to operate with a host government agreement with the city.

Brundidge City officials attended the quarterly meeting of the Environmental Management Commission on Friday to request that the commission consider putting on hold the staff’s transfer of the Alabama Department of Environmental Management permit to Brundidge Acquisitions, LLC to operate the landfill within the city limits of Brundidge. Brundidge Acquisitions is being backed by the Coffee County Commission.

The Environmental Management Commission denied the City’s request and the matter will next be heard by a hearing officer appointed by ADEM. The date for the hearing has not been set.

Brundidge Mayor Jimmy Ramage said that he, City Manager Britt Thomas and attorneys for the city would talk this week to consider the city’s options.

“We do have a right to a hearing,” Ramage said. “At the meeting with the Environmental Management Commission on Friday, we only had 10 minutes to present our side. We feel like the more evidence that we can present, the better our chances of having the stay granted.”

Ramage said the hearing officer’s recommendation would be made to the commission.

“We feel good about the opportunity to present more evidence to the hearing officer,” Ramage said. “Our concern is that ADEM transferred the permit to operate the landfill to Brundidge Acquisitions without a host government agreement. I don’t know of any landfill that is being operated without the city or county host government agreement.”

A host government agreement is an agreement between a company and government to operate within a city or county.