Texas counties generally take the lead in governing unincorporated areas within their borders. But the limits of county authority 鈥� and a lack of clarity over what counties can do 鈥� can be frustrating to residents.
Open burning
That was the case for Sid Hudson. He recently bought a newly built house in an unincorporated area south of McKinney. Hudson heard that another developer, Huffines Communities, would eventually start clearing the land next to his neighborhood to build even more homes.
Over the summer, 鈥淲e just slowly watched the pile of trees get larger and larger and larger,鈥� Hudson said.
Then in August, Huffines Communities started burning the tree pile. Hudson said the smoke and ash drifted onto his property, which was up a small embankment. After the first week of burning, he noticed the pile was just a bit smaller. He started to worry.
鈥淏urning for weeks on end to get rid of it was going to bring smoke and debris and ash across this whole neighborhood for whatever amount of time that took,鈥� he said.
One of Howard鈥檚 neighbors, Abhijit Basu, was concerned about to people with asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
The complaint
Basu had already asked the project manager not to burn the tree pile, to no avail. He didn鈥檛 stop there, though. Basu alerted the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) and told it to expect a call from him when the burning began.
And call he did, soon after the burning started the morning of August 23. A TCEQ investigator came out hours later, but Basu said that by then, the pollution had decreased.
鈥淪o the actual particulate matter was reduced,鈥� he said.
The TCEQ investigator captured an air quality reading just a few points within the acceptable range for .
According to a copy of the state鈥檚 investigation obtained through a public records request, TCEQ told the onsite engineer a violation 鈥渨ould be cited for failure to prevent the discharge of ash and smoke from outdoor burning at the site in such concentrations and of such duration as to interfere with the normal enjoyment and use of property.鈥� The narrative of the investigation said it would be classified as a 鈥渕oderate鈥� violation of state code.
Huffines Communities eventually chipped and hauled away the wood.
The company鈥檚 owner, Don Huffines, is currently running for governor of Texas. Representatives from the Huffines Communities didn鈥檛 respond to calls and emails requesting an interview. The Huffines campaign also didn鈥檛 respond to emails seeking comment.
Basu and Howard said the problem isn鈥檛 just that the developer didn鈥檛 protect their air quality. It鈥檚 also that regulations only kick in after the air is polluted.
In an email, a TCEQ spokeswoman told 四虎影院 the state doesn鈥檛 have to approve outdoor burning like this ahead of time. She also noted, though, that the law 鈥渄oes not exempt or excuse any person responsible for the consequences, damages, or injuries resulting from the burning.鈥�
It鈥檚 unclear what those consequences might be. TCEQ said no one was available for an interview for this story.
Growing pains
Cities . But as Texas grows, who is responsible for these kinds of problems in unincorporated areas?
If you ask Dallas County officials, they say it鈥檚 their job. Dallas County for burning in unincorporated areas and inspects a site ahead of time.
鈥淲e got to see the direction of where they鈥檙e gonna be burning,鈥� said Dallas County Fire Marshal Robert De Los Santos. 鈥淚f it鈥檚 heavily congested with homes, we鈥檙e not going to issue the burn permit.鈥�
On the flip side, Collin County鈥檚 fire marsha told 四虎影院 the county 肠补苍鈥檛 do permits because state law doesn鈥檛 explicitly give them that power.
鈥淭here was no statutory authority to issue burn permits,鈥� said Fire MarshalJason Browning. 鈥淲e鈥檙e not given that authority as cities are.鈥�
Basu, Hudson and other neighbors at least want Collin County to pass a resolution with strong language emphasizing burn rules must be followed.
In emails with Basu obtained by 四虎影院, County Judge Chris Hill told him if he wanted change, Basu would need to contact his state legislators.
Browning also said this kind of complaint is unusual, despite land clearing and development happening across Collin County.
鈥淚 haven鈥檛 received any complaints other than this one in the past many months,鈥� he said.
Alternatives
Sid Hudson thinks this was all avoidable; Huffines Communities could have bought a trench burner, which tamps down smoke and ash as waste burns.
The land being cleared was for expanding a master planned community called according to the community鈥檚 website.
Hudson said, by comparison, buying a trench burner would be a drop in the bucket.
鈥淔or $60,000, they could be a good neighbor,鈥� he stated.
According to the TCEQ investigation, the on-site engineer for the developer said a trench burner wasn鈥檛 considered. He also said the alternatives that were considered were deemed 鈥渆conomically infeasible.鈥�
State rules say economic feasibility is a valid reason for rejecting an alternative to outdoor burning.
As Collin County grows and becomes more dense, this kind of conflict may pop up more, and residents may clamor for more action from the county or the state. But will the bulk of people in Collin County want tighter regulation in the form of laws, regulations and permits?
That鈥檚 a burning question.
Got a tip? Email Bret Jaspers at bjaspers@kera.org. You can follow Bret on Twitter .
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