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Questions submitted for landfill expansion study
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More from EnvironmentThe Simi Valley City Council has forwarded to the county more than 70 questions from council members, residents and a citizen task force to be included in an environmental impact study on the proposed expansion of the Simi Valley Landfill.
The questions will be considered by the consultant for the environmental impact report, a necessary step in the county's application process. The EIR could take up to 18 months to complete.
Mayor Paul Miller and the council decided to forward the list of questions before county planners hold a scoping meeting, which will look at questions raised by neighborhood councils and city agencies.
The biggest question residents want answered is why the expansion project is necessary. "Why now?" asked Councilman Steve Sojka.
Mike Smith, market area general manager for landfill operator Waste Management, said the county works with a 20-year plan for waste capacity, and that his company is at the very beginning of the application process.
He said the county currently can handle about 4,000 tons of trash per day but in five years is expected to generate about 4,500 tons.
But Louis Pandolfi, a member of the Simi Valley Landfill Expansion Task Force, said a recent report by the county Public Works Department stated there are "20 to 22 years of existing landfill capacity to service the needs of Ventura County."
The task force wants the EIR consultant to explore the "no project option."
If the expansion is approved, trash intake could increase from 3,000 tons per day to 6,000.
The expansion, which would double the waste disposal area from 185 to 371 acres, also includes a new office building, which would need water and sewage services, and a scale facility for trash trucks.
Waste Management went before all four neighborhood councils with its report. It will go before the county Planning Commission next week.
The 72 questions submitted by the city ranged from implications of the landfill accepting waste from outside the county to how to handle odors.
For more information on the project, go to http://www.keepingventuracountyclean.com.
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