OXNARD : Immediate Closure of Landfill Is Refused

Oxnard City Council members Tuesday refused to support a request by Councilman Michael Plisky to demand the immediate closure of the Bailard Landfill.

Plisky asked his colleagues to reaffirm the city’s opposition to the continued operation of the landfill. Bailard’s permit to operate expires Dec. 7. The Ventura Regional Sanitation District, which runs the landfill, is seeking to keep it open until May, 1997.

But Plisky’s motion died for lack of a second. His fellow council members said the city already has stated its opposition to the landfill.

“We are opposed to the continuing operation of the Bailard Landfill and we have stated that publicly a number of times,” said Councilman Andres Herrera, the city’s representative on the sanitation district board.

That request to extend the life of the landfill cleared its first hurdle in September when the Regional Water Quality Control Board, which regulates water rights and water quality for the area, voted unanimously to allow Bailard to continue operating past its Dec. 7 deadline.

The Ventura County Planning Commission and the Board of Supervisors are scheduled to rule on the issue early next month.

The Oxnard City Council first voted to oppose the permit extension in September.

Since then, sanitation officials have had little luck finding alternative landfill sites. A proposal to create a landfill in Weldon Canyon north of Ojai was withdrawn because of community opposition. A proposal to haul trash to the Simi Valley Landfill also has met with opposition.