New insight into how the Gainesville Waste and Recycling was able to start composting food waste came to light Friday, along with a letter from Hall County Administrator Randy Knighton to the Georgia Environmental Protection Division clarifying the landfill’s zoning. “The county’s position is that food waste was prohibited on the site for use in composting or disposal at the time the EPD permit was issued and remains prohibited,” stated a draft version of the letter The Times obtained. The county has set up new rules for landfill property owner Ken Cronan to protect residents from the smell of decaying food waste improperly taken and composted into his nearby landfill.