Azusa : Appeal Set on Landfill OK
The Main San Gabriel Basin Watermaster, concerned about possible ground-water contamination from the Azusa Land Reclamation Co., has decided to appeal a regional water board’s approval of the landfill’s expansion plans.
Watermaster officials may also ask that the Regional Water Quality Control Board’s Nov. 28 approval be stayed to prevent any dumping in the expansion area until the appeal is considered by the state Water Quality Control Board.
The appeal must be filed before Dec. 28.
“The essential message (of the Watermaster’s appeal) is that it is an unacceptable risk to put a waste disposal landfill in part of the water recharge basin which serves a million people,” said Burton J. Gindler, the Watermaster’s attorney.
Dump officials have estimated the landfill has between 2 and 3 years’ capacity at the current rate of fill and have said the 25.6-acre expansion would extend the landfill’s life 20 years. They said they will oppose the appeal or any move that would disrupt the scheduled mid-1989 completion date.
Under the proposal approved by the regional board, Azusa Land will provide a dual liner composed of plastic and clay to contain any pollutants resulting from decomposing materials.
The landfill is in a sand and gravel quarry off West Gladstone Street and receives about 1,500 tons of trash daily. The dump, one of five operating landfills in the San Gabriel Valley, has been open since 1952.
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