Landfill: Where’s Supporting Data?

* At the Nov. 18 meeting of the County Board of Supervisors, more than 200 people appeared and more than 5,000 signatures were presented opposing the expansion of the Sunshine Canyon Landfill. The result? A resounding rejection of their appeal by a 4-1 vote, with Mike Antonovich, in whose district the expansion will take place, siding with the community.

Who invited Browning Ferris into our county to build a landfill with the potential to be the largest in the United States and locate it in the midst of a residential area? What enlightened group thought it would be a great idea to build this landfill just uphill and upwind of treatment plants supplying drinking water?

Why? According to legend, we have a trash crisis! How do I know? Simple--call the various agencies in charge of landfill and waste disposal and ask them. Wrong!

In calling the Department of Public Works, the Local Enforcement Agency, the Regional Water Board and the California Integrated Waste Management Board, I asked two questions: What is the current landfill capacity remaining for the city and county and how long until we’ve used it up? Each of these agencies dodged the question, citing variables and uncertainties within their own realm, but with confidence referred to the other agencies as having a definite answer. Going full circle from department to department, the answer finally arrived. No one knows!

With this important non-information in hand, our county Board of Supervisors chose to ignore the local citizenry that they presume to represent, and to expand the landfill based upon information that could at best be described as a guess.

This was done despite the best efforts of state Sen. David Roberti, Rep. Howard P. (Buck) McKeon, Assemblywoman Paula Boland, Assemblyman Richard Katz and City Councilman Hal Bernson to safeguard the health and well-being of their constituents.

A guess! Well, come Election Day, I guess it’s time for a change.

NORAH SCHUMACHER

Granada Hills

Schumacher is an alternate chairwoman of the Solid Waste Citizens Advisory Group, a private countywide organization.