SAN FERNANDO VALLEY : Quake Spurs City to Study Hauling Debris to Utah
Worries about the volume of earthquake debris filling San Fernando Valley landfills led members of a city ad hoc recovery committee Tuesday to instruct city officials to investigate the possibility of hauling trash to a dump in Utah.
Although area landfills are not in immediate danger of reaching capacity because of earthquake debris, sanitation officials said the quake has forced them to focus attention on long-term landfill alternatives.
The amount of trash and earthquake debris has increased 15% at some Valley landfills and gravel pits and as much as 280% at other dumps, officials said Tuesday.
The idea of hauling local trash by rail to a 3,000-acre landfill in East Carbon City, Utah, has been studied by many public agencies in Southern California to avoid the trash crisis that would occur when area landfills reach capacity. It is the first time the city of Los Angeles has shown interest in the idea.
Most of the earthquake debris has been taken to landfills and gravel pits in the northeast San Fernando Valley.
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