L.A. County 5th District Supervisor Kathryn Barger shared a website Monday created by Waste Connections for residents seeking financial assistance from Chiquita Canyon Landfill’s Community Relief Program.
The website mentions funds available for “temporary relocation,” “home hardening” and “increased utility bills,” for the neighborhoods of Val Verde, Live Oak, Hasley Hills, Hillcrest Parkway, Hasley Canyon and Stevenson Ranch.
“I am pleased Chiquita Canyon Landfill has launched their relocation relief program,” Barger wrote in a statement Monday. “The communities impacted by the landfill’s odors deserve support that is responsive to their needs. This is a start.”
The L.A. Regional Water Quality Control Board described the landfill’s main problem in a letter issued March 1 that denied the landfill an opportunity to expand.
“The landfill is currently experiencing an elevated temperature landfill event (‘ETLF’ or ‘reaction’) that is generating increased volumes of leachate that are overwhelming landfill’s containment systems,” according to the water board’s letter. The gases produced at the landfill also have been causing health problems for months for nearby residents.
The landfill also has been cited for the improper handling of waste by the state Department of Toxic Substances Control, and by the Environmental Protection Agency for its air pollution.
Bob Lewis, president of the Castaic Area Town Council, said he hoped the Community Advisory Committee meeting at 6 p.m. Tuesday, which will include John Perkey, legal counsel for
Waste Connections, would address questions that residents might have about the relocation assistance process.
“The application process opened (Monday) and at the moment we do not have an anticipated end date, nor do we have a set amount allocated to the program,” Perkey said in a written statement Monday.
The website mentioned a $3.5 million assistance fund from the landfill for the community. A map at chiquitalandfillcommunityrelief.com shows where those who are eligible can first register, obtain a unique household identification number and then apply for the funds, according to the website.
“Definitely I will be asking for clarification of the community relief program (at Tuesday’s meeting),” Lewis said in a phone interview Monday, adding he will ask that a copy of the application to apply for the program be made available at the meeting.
The landfill is starting to accept applications online as of Monday, according to the site.
The utility relief program for residents, which has a different website and appears to be overseen by the county’s Development Authority, is available here: chiquitacanyonlandfillrelief.lacda.org.
The L.A. County Department of Regional Planning is hosting the Community Advisory Committee meeting in person 6 p.m. Tuesday at the Castaic Library (27971 Sloan Canyon Road) and virtually here: bit.ly/43cXOKI.
