Arcadia : Landfill Proposal Reviewed

Planning commissioners have reviewed an environmental impact study for a proposed landfill near the border of El Monte, but they delayed a final recommendation to the City Council until Oct. 12.

Developer Orion Rodeffer plans to turn a 185-acre gravel pit into a landfill for construction materials such as dirt, gravel and concrete.

The plan for the 150-foot-deep pit at 12321 Lower Azusa Road is similar to a 1985 proposal that Rodeffer withdrew after nearby El Monte residents complained.

Residents of El Monte’s Norwood Village have reiterated many of their concerns from 1985, contending that their property values may drop, ground water could be contaminated and trucks might generate dust and noise.

Officials of Rodeffer Investments in Arcadia, which owns the gravel pit carved by 23 years of mining, countered that the proposed landfill would accept only inert materials, no organic waste.

The company also has promised to buy state-of-the-art monitoring equipment for the landfill, and Arcadia is requiring the firm to pay the salary of a city inspector, said Donna Butler, acting planning director.

El Monte officials had sought to postpone the discussion, giving them more time to look at the document. But the Arcadia Planning Commission rejected that plea and reviewed the report Tuesday.