Newsom Administration Blocks Effort To Shutdown California Landfill
After standing up to the most leftwing legislators in Sacramento in September with vetoes of multiple progressive bills, Governor Gavin Newsom (D-Calif.) has followed up with another move seen as sensible by those who typically dislike the laws promulgated by the California Legislature. In a letter sent to lawmakers late last week, the Newsom administration gave official notice of its decision to decline requests to declare a state emergency in response to issues that have arisen at a single landfill.
California Office of Emergency Services Director Nancy Ward wrote in an October 24 letter to a 17 state legislators who formally requested the emergency declaration, that such action "would not at this time assist efforts to respond to this event."
"In particular, no state laws or regulations impeding response or recovery have been identified to date, and therefore, no suspensions pursuant to the Emergency Services Act authority are presently necessary," Ward added. "Further, a proclamation is not necessary for deployment of state resources or a federal response."
State legislators requested the declaration in response to odor complaints from constituents who live near Southern California's Chiquita Canyon Landfill. The more than half century old landfill, located north of Los Angeles, has seen an uptick of odor complaints in recent years. The rise in odor complaints related to Chiquita Canyon has coincided with the discovery of a rare chemical reaction that is affecting 35 acres located in one of the older sections of the 639-acre landfill.
"Chiquita and its employees are there on-site each day working hard as they can to address this issue," Megan Morgan, an attorney for the landfill operator, told state regulators in January. While news reports characterize the landfill operator as a company that "continues to deny the existence of any health impacts," Chiquita Canyon is providing objective air quality data and has been taking remedial action.
"Chiquita Canyon staff have constructed wells to extract liquids and gases that are fueling the smoldering conditions," the Los Angeles Times reported back in January. "They have installed a flare to burn off flammable gases, including methane, which has been detected at explosive levels at the landfill's perimeter. They've also added soil to repair cracks where gases and liquids have been seeping out, operators said."
The 17 California legislators who sent an early October letter to Newsom calling for a state emergency declaration regarding Chiquita Canyon, as is often the approach in Sacramento, were effectively telling the Newsom administration, "don't just stand there, do something." Yet, when it comes to Chiquita Canyon, government officials and agencies are not standing idle. Aside from remedial efforts on the part of Chiquita Canyon, the Newsom administration noted that the EPA and other government entities have already committed considerable resources to rectifying the situation at Chiquita Canyon.
"The various federal, state and local regulatory agencies involved continue to exercise their regulatory oversight authority and take enforcement actions against Chiquita Canyon Landfill as warranted," Ward explained in her October 24 letter to state lawmakers, "including actions by the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board to ensure slope stability and by the Department of Toxic Substances Control to minimize the potential release of hazardous waste."
In addition to these calls for a state of emergency, a small group of residents in the community near Chiquita Canyon, along with local politicians who are trying to shore up voter support ahead of next week's elections, have been calling for a total shutdown of the landfill. The Newsom administration's rejection of an emergency declaration related to Chiquita Canyon makes clear the landfill will not be shutdown.
Closing Chiquita Canyon landfill, critics contend, will not rectify any of the issues that communities groups are seeking to address. Abrupt closure of such a landfill would present new challenges that could trigger a local infrastructure and public health crisis affecting the nation's second largest city. Shutting down the landfill, critics contend, could present new environmental concerns. Despite California's status as a one-party state, the Newsom administration's recent actions demonstrate there are still some in Sacramento who recognize unrealistic demands when they see them, whether they're coming from progressive legislators, activists from their own political base, or both.
