Residents near a Florida landfill say a rotten-egg smell has disrupted their daily routines for years. Their complaints led county leaders to pursue legal action.
There were no dissenting votes when Lake County commissioners agreed to sue the landfill operator and state environmental regulators.
Here's what to know
The planned lawsuit is against Hubbard Construction, which operates the Mid-Florida Landfill, and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, according to WKMG News 6. The landfill is in the Mount Dora area on Robie Avenue near Sullivan Ranch.
A 2025 municipal study traced the odor complaints to the landfill. Nearby residents have likened the smell to sulfur or rotten eggs.
"It's literally right behind the dump. You can smell it right now, just standing back here," Sullivan Ranch resident Caleb Swallow told News 6.
More background
More communities are contending with the unpleasant conditions.
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"The complaints are getting much worse because the dump has just grown and grown in size, and there's more development, so there's more communities being affected than just ours," resident Mandy Richardson told News 6.
Drinking water and air quality are also concerns for neighbors and commissioners, who have questioned the landfill's effects beyond the smell.
What's being done?
The decision to go to court followed continued odor complaints despite attempts to work with the landfill operator. County leaders told News 6 that they had sought the company's cooperation but that those efforts did not resolve residents' concerns.
State regulators should be doing more, Swallow said.
The FDEP said it does not comment on pending litigation.
"The fear for the future of what that could hold for our drinking water and the air that we breathe is really frightening. It's so critical now more than ever that the county and the city step in and put some regulations in place," Richardson told News 6.
Where can I learn more?
Other communities have raised similar concerns about landfill odors and environmental oversight.
• In Florida, residents and county officials appealed a 610-acre landfill approval.
• In California, residents sued over toxic gases they said made life near a landfill unbearable.
• California air regulators ordered Newby Island landfill operators to address air quality and odors.
• North Carolina faced a 99-year landfill inspection backlog, including sites near homes and schools.
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