District Rejects Water Request for Proposed Landfill

The Casitas Municipal Water District has rejected a request to supply water for a proposed landfill in Weldon Canyon, adding a new stumbling block for the firm that plans to operate the dump.

In an interview Wednesday, John Johnson, general manager of the water district, said he told a representative of Waste Management of North America Inc. last week that the district has a moratorium on new water connections.

“The position of Casitas staff is that they are just like any other person who would want to expand their system,” he said.

The moratorium, which is in response to a five-year drought, began nearly a year ago and will continue until the district gets more water.

The proposed landfill at the scenic Weldon Canyon would replace Oxnard’s Bailard dump, scheduled to close in late 1993. It would be the only landfill serving western Ventura County.

Opposition to the new dump, however, has been strong, especially in the nearby Ojai Valley, where residents fear dust and other air pollution from the landfill.

The canyon lies between Ventura and Ojai, east of California 33 and north of Canada Larga Road. It was identified by a 1985 county study as the best of 38 possible sites for a new landfill.

James Jevens, project manager of Waste Management, said that instead of relying on Casitas water, his firm will consider getting water by digging wells at the landfill site. Jevens said he does not consider the water moratorium a serious setback for his plans to operate the landfill.

“At this point in time it is a drought-related hindrance,” he said.

Waste Management plans to use about 2.6 million gallons of water each year, according to a county study. Most water used for the landfill would be used for dust control and landscape irrigation.

Although the water requested by Waste Management is equivalent to the amount used by about 15 residences for one year, Johnson said the district’s ban on new connections is final.

“We will provide no new services at all, period,” Johnson said.

After Waste Management was denied a water connection, Johnson said the firm asked for a water connection strictly for use in a fire emergency.

He said he told Waste Management that the district would only provide water for fire emergencies on the condition that Waste Management proves it has a 60-year water supply for other uses.

Jevens said the issue of adding a connection for fire emergencies needs to be studied further by his firm and Casitas officials.

“The objective was to explore those alternatives further,” he said.

Jevens said he has met with county planners to discuss the possibility of refitting houses in the area with low-flow showers and toilets to compensate the water district for the water that the landfill would use. He declined to provide details.

While Jevens has not approached Casitas officials with his proposal, Johnson said the district would not be swayed by such an offer.

“If we approved something like this for Weldon Canyon, we would have to approve that for everybody,” Johnson said.

Waste Management received a letter from Casitas in 1986 promising water for the dump. Casitas officials have said, however, that the terms of the letter expired several years ago.

Johnson said the board of directors for Casitas will meet next week to consider extending the moratorium another year. Johnson said he believes the moratorium will continue.

“Until we get additional supplies, that moratorium will go on for a while,” he said.

Ventura County Planner Scott Ellison said the Bailard Landfill near Oxnard operates without a water connection and uses non-potable ground water for dust control. He said employees there drink bottled water.

Ellison said the Weldon Canyon landfill can also build a tank with a pump to provide water for fire emergencies.

The proposal by Jevens to refit buildings with low-flow devices in exchange for water rights is similar to an agreement reached last month between the city of Ojai and two local developers who wanted to build warehouses.

The Ojai Planning Commission approved the new construction in exchange for a promise to install low-flow toilets in City Hall and a dozen other public buildings.

Johnson said Ojai officials could take such an action because Casitas had agreed to provide water to the developers before the moratorium was adopted.