SOM FILES CEQA COMPLAINT
Today, SETHI ORCHID MINER LLP filed a CEQA Complaint on behalf of Citizens for Chiquita Canyon Closure with the Los Angeles County Superior Court.
This complaint is filed to challenge the County of Los Angeles’ continued approval of the Chiquita Canyon Landfill operations in violation of the Conditional Use Permit, the County’s duty to protect public health, and the California Environmental Quality Act.
The Chiquita Canyon Landfill is currently creating a health crisis in the community surrounding the Landfill. Over the past year there have been thousands of complaints, hundreds of notices of violation from the South Coast Air Quality Management District, a notice of violation from Los Angeles County, and violation notices from other agencies.
Residents in the area report frequent headaches, breathing issues, nosebleeds, and more long-term health conditions. The community is being exposed to toxic gasses being released from the Chiquita Canyon Landfill including elevated levels of hydrogen sulfide and benzene. The Department of Public Health has indicated that the symptoms reported by community members are consistent with exposure to hydrogen sulfide and benzene.
IN THE PRESS — As from The Signal, following the protest that took place on Thursday, February 22, 2024,
“Williams was one of about 50 people who showed up for the official announcement of a petition for writ of mandate that was filed Thursday morning on behalf of the petitioners, Citizens for Chiquita Canyon Closure. The petition, filed against Los Angeles County, alleges that the county has failed to enforce the conditional use permit allowing the landfill to operate, thereby allowing the landfill to continue operations and causing “toxic landfill gasses to become a nuisance and serious health crisis in the surrounding community.””
“Oshea Orchid, an attorney with Sethi, Orchid & Miner, the law firm representing the petitioners, said at the press conference that the landfill needs to be shut down in order for remedial measures to take place.
“It’s really important that we get more attention to this issue,” Orchid said. “For the community here, this has become a serious health crisis. The community has been reporting thousands of complaints, not just over the last year, but even this month alone, there’s been over 1,400 complaints, to date. There’s also been hundreds of notices of violation issued by various regulatory agencies.”
The petition goes on to state that the conditional use permit to operate the landfill, first approved in 1977 and extended multiple times thereafter, has been violated due to continued operation despite an inability to mitigate air quality concerns and greenhouse gas emissions.
The county approved the latest conditional use permit in 2017, allowing the landfill to expand and operate for another 30 years, according to the petition, so long as “it would not adversely affect the health, peace, comfort, or welfare of persons residing or working in the surrounding area; would not be materially detrimental to the use, enjoyment, or valuation of property of other persons located in the vicinity of the Project Site; and would not jeopardize, endanger, or otherwise constitute a menace to the public health, safety, or general welfare.”
Orchid said, based on what community members have told her, the landfill has not been able to uphold its end of the bargain to keep the surrounding communities safe.
