Wet Weather Causing Big Stink At Composting Yard

CLINTON TOWNSHIP (WWJ) - Huge piles of fermenting grass clippings are creating a huge stench in Clinton Township at a local composting business. In fact, WWJ's Ron Dewey reports they're going to court later this month over the big stink.

"It's an odor almost like something were dead," said Charles Walker. "You have to stop doing it or get some kind of chemical to cut the smell down."

Renee Micheals of Uni-Dig in Clinton Township says composting has been difficult with the amount of rain and saturated grass and yard waste:

"But this year, it's been difficult because the products I use to mask odors ... you spray it onto the piles, but then as you're doing that, it rains and that washes the product off and you have to spray again," said Micheals.

Residents in the 15 Mile-Gratiot area complain about the inordinate stench created by piles of wet grass clippings in last week's hot, muggy weather and that's led to a court hearing for later this month. Micheals says they do take measures  to stabilize the stench.

"We've become a complaint targeted society," said Micheals. She says they already spray an environmentally friendly compound over the yard waste. But heavy rains kept washing it away. "The alternative is, where do I send them?"

Micheals says there's a problem in Michigan with a lack of places to take yard waste.

In light of the complaints made to the township, Uni-Dig has been gathering signatures of businesses and contractors who says they depend on them to handle their yard waste. So far, they have over 120 names.