Prosecution Rejected in Excavation at Landfill

The city of Los Angeles will not be prosecuted for alleged illegal garbage excavation at Lopez Canyon Landfill because state laws preclude criminal prosecution of public agencies, a spokesman for the Los Angeles district attorney’s office said Friday.

David H. Guthman, head deputy district attorney in the environmental crimes division, said the decision not to prosecute did not mean that the city was blameless for grading a road through the trash in March without required permits. That excavation released toxic gases that caused two landfill workers to faint.

“If this had been any operator other than a governmental entity, there would’ve been enough to file criminal charges,” Guthman said.

However, he said the air resources section of the state Health and Safety Code does not allow criminal prosecution of any public agency or employee.

Pursuing Action

South Coast Air Quality Management District officials, who had asked the district attorney to investigate the incident, plan to proceed with civil action against the city’s Bureau of Sanitation, said spokesman David Rutherford.

“Obviously we were hoping that they would take it, but we still have every intention of pursuing it ourselves,” he said.

Residents of neighborhoods near the dump, many of whom oppose its continued operation, were disappointed by the district attorney’s decision.

“Everybody feels that we’re being let down by the process because time and again we point out violations and they recognize that there are violations and they’re doing nothing to stop them,” said Mark Hattan, who lives in Kagel Canyon. “It just keeps getting pushed aside.”

Bureau of Sanitation officials could not be reached for comment Friday. They have acknowledged that mistakes were made March 8, when the workers were overcome by gases while digging into 1981-vintage trash. However, they said they have taken precautions to prevent recurrences, including hiring an on-site environmental officer and delaying any further deep excavation.

Rutherford said the AQMD also plans to push forward with four more civil charges that also were reviewed and rejected by the district attorney: three incidents of odor releases into surrounding neighborhoods and a delay in construction of a landfill gas collection and flare system to deal with gas and odor problems.

He said AQMD attorneys also plan to pursue a sixth charge related to a report from hikers who earlier this month discovered a broken gas pipe at the dump, which they said was leaking.

In other action, the AQMD hearing board voted Thursday to grant the city an extension through Aug. 2 to complete its gas collection and flare system. AQMD officials have said such a system could prevent future gas and odor release problems by venting gases to the surface and burning them off.

Earlier this month, the board discussed filing suit to force the city to complete the gas system by or soon after a July 1 deadline, which had been extended several times. But Rutherford said the board decided Thursday not to go to court, at least until the city has more time to propose alternatives. City sanitation officials have estimated that it could take until October to complete the system.