Week in Review : MAJOR EVENTS, IMAGES AND PEOPLE IN ORANGE COUNTY NEWS. : CITIES : 123 Families in McColl Dump Area to Receive From $25,400 to $129,700
The official figures finally became public when the documents were filed in Superior Court last week:
One hundred twenty-three families living near the McColl toxic waste dump in Fullerton each will receive between $25,400 and $129,700 from settlements of their lawsuits against developers, the city and others.
The amount of settlements for 18 other families has not yet been revealed.
The McColl dump, where aviation fuel wastes were deposited during World War II, has been emitting noxious fumes for years, the lawsuits allege. Removal of the toxic waste is ready to begin once an environmental impact study is completed.
While the McColl lawsuits are winding down, more dumping cases were started on their way to court.
The district attorney’s office filed a civil complaint against Key Medical Laboratory Services of Santa Ana, alleging that at the firm dumped unsterilized infectious material in unmarked boxes at unauthorized dumps at least three times. The suit is seeking more than $1.7 million from the company.
And the district attorney, along with the Orange County Sanitation Districts, filed charges of repeated illegal toxic dumping against Bristol Industries, a Brea metal plating firm. According to the complaint, Bristol dumped toxic heavy metals into the sewers at levels far higher than allowable. The complaint alleged one instance of dumping nickel at 239 times the allowable level.
The charges could result in $266,000 in penalties, the largest such enforcement action in county history.
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