Former Durham Yard-Waste Chief Reassigned To New Job

DURHAM, N.C. — The former head of Durham's yard waste dump has a new job with the city.

City Manager Patrick Baker has appointed Roosevelt Carter as the equipment supervisor at the Durham Police Department. Carter took a $3,000 pay cut, but he will still make nearly $61,000 a year.

Carter was placed on paid administrative leave about the same time that a fire smoldered at the waste dump for nearly two weeks in September.

Carter became manager of the site in July 2004, three days after the city's permit expired. Since that time, numerous letters from the Division of Waste Management of the North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources were sent to city officials, warning them to make necessary changes to the facility. All of the letters were addressed to Carter.

In October, Baker completed a report that detailed the chain of information surrounding the facility prior to the fire. While the report was not made available to WRAL, Baker said it showed he had been aware that managers were working on permit issues, but did not know that they had left out important details.

City officials have said they believe the fire was caused by spontaneous combustion, which can occur in large piles of yard waste when organic materials begin to decay.