The county Board of Supervisors Tuesday threw its support behind two state Assembly bills aimed at providing financial relief to residents impacted by the troubled Chiquita Canyon Landfill.
Located in the Castaic area, the landfill has generated hundreds of complaints from residents due to persistent odors and concerns about possible cancer risk and other impacts.
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Assemblywoman Pilar Schiavo, D-Chatsworth, introduced two bills relating the landfill. AB 27 would provide compensation for costs and losses related to the landfill issues, continuing through Dec. 1, 2029. AB 28, meanwhile, calls for increased operator accountability and reporting requirements to address the landfill's gas and odor issues.
Landfill operations at the facility ceased in January, with the owners agreeing to work to control noxious odors that have been emanating from the facility due to what has been described as an underground chemical reaction.
The Board of Supervisors has instructed the county Department of Public Works to conduct an assessment of the closure's implications on countywide waste-handling operations.
Many residents from nearby communities including Val Verde and Castaic have been pushing the county to declare a local emergency over the landfill, potentially providing resources to assist residents, including relocation assistance.
The county sued Chiquita Canyon LLC in federal court in December over the continued noxious emissions.
A group of area residents also sued the landfill's owners in October 2024, alleging the company failed to properly manage the landfill's gas capture, control systems and leachate systems. Leachate is a polluted liquid that forms from rainwater filtering through solid waste.
The alleged failure caused the emission of elevated and harmful levels of carbon monoxide, hydrogen sulfide and volatile organic gases, creating unsafe living conditions for thousands of residents, their lawsuit says.
Last year alone, there were 13,000 odor complaints about the landfill, plaintiffs' attorneys alleged in the October suit.
Residents have reported headaches, nausea, respiratory issues and the inability to enjoy use of their properties due to the offensive smells, the suit stated.
Landfill officials said odors from the facility are due to "an abnormal biotic or abiotic process, also known as a landfill reaction, taking place deep within a lined but older and inactive portion of the landfill waste mess."
The county alleged local families have been forced to stay indoors, run their air conditioning and heat at all times of the day, and have been unable to enjoy outdoor activities or even use their yards -- further impacting mental health and wellbeing, especially of children.
The county has also been assessing resident claims the landfill has led to a cluster of cancer cases in the area.
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