Workers have pumped at least 300,000 gallons of illegally dumped sludge from a Scotland County swamp since April, an official at the Laurinburg-Maxton Airport said.

The state suspects a former employee of the airport's wastewater treatment facility dumped the sludge into the nearby wetlands for months to save money.

Paul Davis, the airport's executive director, told the Laurinburg City Council that the removed sludge was being held in an old tank on the airport's property.

The state's Division of Water Quality has fined the airport nearly $100,000, though the airport is appealing.

Cleanup efforts in the swamp began in April. The airport failed to meet a May 25 deadline to clean up the sludge, prompting state officials to extend the deadline to July 16.

Belinda Henson, a spokeswoman with the state Division of Water Quality, said she had never been told how much sludge had been pumped until Davis addressed the city council this week.

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Information from: The Fayetteville Observer, http://www.fayettevillenc.com