LOS ANGELES DAILY NEWS

“Chiquita Canyon Landfill in Castaic hit with state violation for dumping leachate”

“These raise pretty serious concerns about what is going in the water,” said Oshea Orchid, an attorney who filed a lawsuit asking the court to close the facility. The case was filed on behalf of dozens of residents living in Val Verde, Hasley Canyon, Castaic and Live Oak — near the 639-acre landfill in the Santa Clarita Valley — who have reported asthma attacks, bloody noses, skin irritations, nausea and heart palpitations to authorities for more a year and blamed their health issues on noxious odors from the landfill.

Orchid said the landfill is producing up to 200,000 gallons of leachate a day that has been pumped into waterways or kept in storage tanks onsite. State regulatory authorities concluded the leachate is the result of a very hot smoldering event caused by an out-of-control reaction in an older, inactive section of the landfill.