Air Quality Officials Tour Dump : Emissions: Inspection comes midway through the board’s inquiry into alleged violations of state air pollution laws at the Lopez Canyon Landfill.

Regional air quality officials toured the Lopez Canyon Landfill on Friday and inspected a new $2-million system that city sanitation engineers say will reduce noxious gas emissions--and the fears of nearby residents--at the only dump operated by the city of Los Angeles.

“We’re doing the best job here it’s humanly possible to do,” said senior engineer Luther Derian.

The tour, staged for the five-member hearing board of the South Coast Air Quality Management District, came midway through the board’s inquiry into alleged violations of state air pollution laws at the northeast San Fernando Valley landfill, where 4,000 tons of household garbage are dumped each day.

Residents of the Lake View Terrace and Kagel Canyon areas and their city and state elected representatives have asked the board--the AQMD’s enforcement arm--to close the dump until the city complies with state law. In August, 1989, the board ordered the city to bring methane gas emissions down to the state limit by last December.

State and local officials, however, said that as recently as April, emissions were measured at 10,000 parts per million, 20 times the 500 p.p.m. allowed by the state. Bureau of Sanitation officials did not dispute that, but said it was expected that they would need time to get the new gas-collection system working and predicted they will be in compliance with the law by August.

At the hearings, residents have told AQMD officials about foul odors and have contended that landfill fumes have caused illnesses and other problems.

“We constantly monitor the situation and we fix it if there is a problem,” engineer Jeff Dobrowolski said during Friday’s tour. “We intend to be in complete compliance with the law.”

About a dozen residents--who also oppose a planned expansion of the dump--accompanied the AQMD board and city representatives on the two-hour tour. They saw little trash. As trucks snaked up the hillside and dumped garbage, it was neatly covered with dirt by bulldozers.

Otherwise, board members saw a clean landfill of graded slopes and mountain ridges that had sprouted grass and shrubs, which caused landfill opponent Rob Zapple to label the tour “sanitized.”

As a bus transported tour participants to the top of the landfill, Mark Abramowitz, a hearing board member, repeatedly asked where certain groups of residents lived in relation to the landfill.

Tour participants were allowed out of the bus briefly to inspect a flare system that burns off gas collected by the 130 newly installed wells.

“Are you getting any toxics?” Abramowitz asked.

“We’re still reviewing that,” Dobrowolski answered.

He assured board members that the system eventually would bring the landfill into compliance with the law. “Right now, we’re seeing hot spots that were 10,000 p.p.m. being reduced to 500,” Dobrowolski said. “We’re going from area to area fixing problems.”

Sanitation officials told residents they would not smell odors from the dump once the gas collection system had been properly adjusted.

At one point in the tour, neighbors and other participants were not allowed to accompany air quality officials as they were shown a portion of the landfill.

“That’s where all the trash is,” said Zapple, a Kagel Canyon homeowner leader. “Wind-blown trash is literally knee-deep in that canyon.”

Sanitation engineers said there is trash in the canyon that has not been buried but denied it is knee-deep.

“Clearly, they have designed this tour so the public can have as little input as possible,” Zapple said.

“This tour is for the board,” Dobrowolski replied. “We’re doing what they want.”

NEXT STEP

AQMD hearings into toxic gas emissions at the Lopez Canyon Landfill will continue at 1 p.m. Monday when regional air quality engineers will testify before the hearing board.

On June 22, the city of Los Angeles Bureau of Sanitation, represented by Deputy City Atty. Christopher Westhoff, will call witnesses in response to a variety of allegations made at three previous hearings by neighbors of the dump. Westhoff said he intends to call at least 11 witnesses and will need at least three or four days to present the city’s defense. Hearing board members said they hope to make a decision sometime next month. If the dump is found to be in violation of state law, the board can shut it down. In that event, the city would probably appeal the decision in court.