Weeklong Compost-Heap Fire Extinguished, but Issues Still Smolder

A smoldering compost heap that forced health warnings, fueled a labor dispute and had county fire crews working nonstop for 60 hours was finally extinguished Sunday morning, as officials began taking steps to prevent similar mishaps in the future.

The 3.2-acre fire apparently self-ignited March 11 in a pile of straw and horse manure at the PictSweet Mushroom Farm near Ventura. It spewed acrid smoke over much of western Ventura County for seven days.

Despite the pungent odor and hazy air, however, no state or federal air-pollution standards--averaged over a 24-hour period--were violated and no out-of-the-ordinary toxins were found downwind from the smoke plumes, air quality officials said Sunday. All health advisories have been canceled.

“While it was not a good situation, it was not a critical situation on a 24-hour basis,” said Dick Baldwin, executive director of the Ventura County Air Pollution Control District.

Authorities embarked Thursday on a plan to put out the fire, after four days of weighing different approaches that wouldn’t make the fire worse. Concerns had been raised that dousing the blaze with water could kick up huge plumes of smoke and send polluted runoff into the Santa Clara River.

The chosen method--scooping up the compost and spreading it out on an adjacent field where it was smothered with thin layers of soil--began when fire authorities received clearance from the landowner to use the property, said Sandi Wells, a Ventura County Fire Department spokeswoman. Cost estimates for the weeklong, multi-agency effort are expected to be released Tuesday.

Wells said officials at the county’s Environmental Health Department are still testing the remaining compost to determine if it will be considered “residue,” which would require special cleanup efforts by PictSweet.

“Everyone is very relieved that the fire’s out,” Wells said following the 10:45 a.m. announcement that the blaze was extinguished. “This type of fire, in the best of circumstances, is not extinguished quickly. Our concern for public health and the environment has been our focus for the past week.”

During that time, frustration intensified as people with respiratory problems were urged to stay indoors, schools canceled outdoor activities, and, on Friday, dozens of mushroom pickers involved in a long-standing labor dispute said PictSweet officials failed to warn them about health risks of working amid the smoke.

Air quality regulators could fine PictSweet anywhere from $1,000 to $75,000 a day for the public nuisance the fire caused.

Baldwin said he has no idea whether the company will be penalized or how much any fine would be.

“Next week, after things calm down, we will be reviewing all the facts and deciding what to do,” he said.

Officials at the mushroom farm could not be reached Sunday for comment.

Although compost fires are not unheard of in this agricultural county, the PictSweet incident escalated into a major problem because of its size.

The heap, officials said, was three times larger than normal, because a loss in production stemming from PictSweet’s labor dispute resulted in boycotts, and thus lower sales.

That fact has raised questions about the amount of the fertilizer material that should be allowed to be stored on local farms and could result in some changes to county law, such as the health and safety code, Wells said.

“We’re working together to see what codes are applicable and what codes might be developed,” she said.

Baldwin said the air pollution district has no regulatory authority to restrict the size of compost piles, but said he will make his opinions known.

“I personally hope they’ll come up with some kind of limitation on what they could store so this kind of thing won’t happen again,” he said.