$1-Billion Casmalia Dump Suit Filed

A $1-billion class-action suit was filed Friday in Santa Maria Superior Court against the Casmalia Resources hazardous waste dump eight miles from here.

Santa Maria attorney Richard Brenneman said the suit, brought on behalf of three residents of the small community of Casmalia, alleges that townspeople have suffered ill health and declining property values as a result of emissions from the dump.

Brenneman said half of 16 area residents examined by physicians had “abnormal blood chemistry.”

Julie Friedman, a spokeswoman for Casmalia Resources, said there would be no immediate comment.

The dump is one of only two available to Southern California hazardous waste generators. The other site, Kettleman Hills, is located in Kings County in the western San Joaquin Valley.