Community organizers are calling on Rockdale County to revoke BioLab’s business license in response to the September fire at its chemical plant that sent up a massive toxic plume and forced thousands of residents to evacuate.
Ifaat Walker, executive director of Community Action Now, a nonprofit in Rockdale, said she appreciates that the county has brought a federal lawsuit calling for the company to be shut down. But she called on county officials to “use the ordinance that you have.”
“Enforce the rules that are already there,” Walker said at a news conference Tuesday at the state Capitol where she and other advocates demanded that governments hold businesses like BioLab accountable for such disasters.
It was not immediately clear how effective it would be for the county to revoke Biolab’s license. One county commissioner, Sherri Washington, said she doesn’t think it would be legal to do so.
A spokesperson for BioLab said Tuesday that its top priorities are the health and safety of the communities in which it operates.
“We worked collaboratively with first responders and local, state and federal authorities to successfully remediate the situation at our Conyers warehouse storing raw materials used in the manufacturing of products that treat swimming pools and spas,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “We remain firmly committed to understanding the causes of the incident and have been cooperating with the U.S. Chemical Safety Board’s investigation, which remains ongoing.
“At this time, the Conyers plant has not resumed manufacturing operations, and any resumption of these operations will only be undertaken with approval from authorities and regulators. As we move forward, we remain committed to making things right for impacted area residents and business owners.”
Rockdale County’s code of ordinances says that the Board of Commissioners “shall suspend or revoke” a business license if a company violates federal, state or local laws, or if it’s proven “that the health, morals, interest and convenience of the public demand the revocation of that license.”
Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC
Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC
Paul Glaze, a spokesperson for Georgia Conservation Voters Education Fund, started a petition on Change.org that has about 400 signatures demanding that Rockdale commissioners revoke the business license. Another petition on Change.org has 11,000 signatures. It calls for the shutdown of BioLab’s operations in Rockdale, citing health and safety concerns,
Washington, who failed to win reelection this year and whose term ends Dec. 31, said Tuesday she had not heard about the petition and said that, “normally, for injunctive relief, that usually comes from a judge.”
“We are looking at all of the avenues available to us to curtail BioLab’s business operations,” she said in a phone interview. “At this juncture we do not believe that we can legally revoke their license.”
“I don’t think that revoking their business license is going to be the remedy that the people want,” Washington added. “That just seems like ... a reactive thing to do. We would get sued if we just said: ‘We don’t want you here anymore. We’re going to revoke your business license.’”
A Rockdale County spokesperson, Joy Caldwell, noted that the county retained an outside law firm that filed a lawsuit in federal court against BioLab and related companies in October, alleging violations of the Clean Air Act, negligence and creating a nuisance.
“The legal proceedings are currently in progress,” Caldwell said. “Rockdale County remains committed to transparency and ensuring the safety and well-being of its residents. We will continue to pursue all necessary legal avenues to hold BioLab and its related companies accountable for their actions.”
Caldwell did not respond to questions about any business license BioLab has with the county, and did not immediately provide a copy of it or confirm that one exists.
She also referred questions to the outside lawyers, who could not immediately be reached for comment.
County Commissioner Doreen Williams referred a reporter to Caldwell’s statement and declined to comment further.
Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC
Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC
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