Final phase of cleanup to begin at Kirby tire dump

SYCAMORE, Ohio (AP) -- Residents near a former massive tire dump in northwest Ohio will smell unpleasant reminders next month of a 1999 fire that burned for five days, the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency said Tuesday.
The state is beginning the $3.26 million final phase of the cleanup at the Kirby dump near Sycamore in Wyandot County, by digging out 65,000 tons of burned rubber and soil.
About 5 million to 7 million of more than 20 million tires stored at the dump burned in the arson, which was extinguished by burying the flaming rubber under 2 feet of soil. Smoke had been visible as far away as Columbus, 65 miles south.
Although no new fires will be started, the excavation will release burning rubber odors, the EPA said.
So far EPA has spent $13 million to remove about 19 million undamaged tires and $6 million to treat contaminated water. The money comes from a $1 fee on each new tire sold in Ohio.
Last fall a judge ordered dump owners Don and Rebecca Williams and Doris Kirby to pay a $20 million civil penalty and $26 million to repay the state for the cleanup. The judge acknowledged the owners don't have that much money.
Four people were convicted of starting the fire, which started as a state-ordered tire removal project was beginning.