Most Santa Clarita Valley folks have a hunch that something’s going wrong “over there, off the 126.” And people living “over there” by the Chiquita Canyon Landfill absolutely know something is very wrong, and they’re in a living hell trying to get effective assistance from almost anyone involved: L.A. County with their myriad of agencies, state water agencies, air quality boards, Gov. Gavin Newsom, and Waste Connections itself. By appearances and observed impact on the ground, all are dithering and running out the clock.
The extent of failure to respond to westside SCV residents’ needs and concerns is vast. Pick it, Republicans, Democrats, boards, specialists and corporations: All have failed the people. Noxious landfill gases continue to sicken and ruin lives of those living in proximity to the landfill.
And who are these lives getting ruined?
At first two years ago, the silently suffering people of Val Verde living close to the landfill took the hard hits. As the landfill crisis accelerated, areas impacted today include Castaic, Copperhill, Williams Ranch, Stevenson Ranch and the “new” Valencia areas. Schools full of kids and businesses full of workers are also submerged in disgusting odors and volatile organic compounds being spewed into our valley’s air. This is not a Val Verde problem. This is an “everyone problem.”
To date, there have been over 24,000 citizen complaints and over 270 formal notices of violation issued to Waste Connections, the landfill operator. Despite this outrage, there’s been no monetary fines assessed to Waste Connections, no rollback of waste being accepted by the landfill, and........