ROCKDALE COUNTY, Ga. – An EPA whistleblower answered a call from some Rockdale County residents asking questions about chunks of black debris they had discovered in their yards since the BioLab chemical plant fire that triggered a statewide shelter-in-place order last week .

EPA officials said those black chunks were pieces of “burned structural debris” from the fire and that BioLab’s test results confirmed no asbestos was present. One local resident told FOX 5 that the information wasn’t enough – and a fairly well-known environmental scientist agreed.

“I have an expression that says, ‘You can’t find what you’re not looking for,'” independent scientist Scott Smith told FOX 5.

Smith has made his career searching for irregularities underground in contaminated communities like East Palestine, Ohio, where a train derailment last February released dangerous toxins into the air and soil.

Over the weekend, Smith visited Conyers, where residents are still dealing with the effects of a huge plume of dangerous smoke that lingered for days.

“Two million pounds of chlorine were burned in East Palestine,” he recalled. “Twelve to 20 million pounds of chlorine may have been burned here.”

Cathy Breedlove is one of several residents who reported finding remnants of charred debris from the smoke in their yard.

“We’re still extremely concerned…this is really scary for people and our dogs,” she told FOX 5.

Although they were told the BioLab test results showed no signs of asbestos, they and other neighbors are still concerned about what else might be present.

“I’m not a chemist so I don’t know what else to worry about, but testing for asbestos alone doesn’t give us any comfort,” she explained.

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Breedlove met with Smith at her home on Monday. He took water and soil samples on their property. He says he will test for other cancer-causing chemicals.

“A lot of chlorine has burned… and what happens when you have those smoldering burns… you have products of incomplete combustion,” Smith explained.

He tells FOX 5: In situations like this, independent testing is critical. He criticized the EPA for not taking on this responsibility.

EPA officials said they directed BioLab to collect samples of the debris. Several attempts to find out what else BioLab tested this debris for have so far remained unanswered. BioLab has offered to collect debris. Residents can send a request to [email protected].