Oh, dear.
Local residents in Lincoln County, Tennessee are now complaining about an out-of-control black “whiskey fungus” in their area. Also known as Baudoinia compniacensis, it is capable of smothering homes, porches, and cars. The fungi’s spread is fueled thanks to the ethanol vapor coming out from the popular liquor maker Jack Daniel’s facilities. The company actually built six barrel houses in the County in 2018 and still has plans to build 14 more.
With the spread of the fungi and the announcement of more barrel houses, residents are enraged with the company. They are currently demanding the local government and Jack Daniel’s to answer for the damage and the sinking property values thanks to fungi and the ethanol-filled air.
According to Patrick Long, one of the residents of Lincoln County, the community has two main demands: an air-filtration system for blocking the ethanol, and an environmental-impact study evaluating the amount of ethanol emanating from the barrel houses and any health risks it poses.
"I'm extremely concerned. My wife has breathing problems. One of the neighbors got cancer," Long said. "It's in the air. And you really, probably don't want to be breathing that in. But nobody has done a test to determine if it's poisonous."
Read more about the issue here.
Image credit: Patrick Long