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Consultant hired for EIR on landfill work
Board approves full report to move on with application for expansion
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More from Local NewsThe county Board of Supervisors agreed Tuesday to move forward with the application for a Simi Valley Landfill expansion by hiring a consultant to complete a full environmental impact report.
The board approved a contract, not to exceed $480,823, with Science Applications International Corp. The next step is a scoping meeting in June where residents will be asked for input.
Landfill operator Waste Management will pay for the cost of the environmental report, which could take up to 18 months to complete.
"We are pleased that the county is moving forward with the selection of an outside consultant to complete a full environmental impact report for our proposed project," said Mike Smith, market area general manager for Waste Management of Ventura County.
If the expansion is approved, it would be one of the largest landfills in Southern California.
The expansion would double the waste disposal area from 185 to 371 acres, and trash intake at the facility could increase from 3,000 tons per day to 6,000.
Plans also include a scale facility for trash trucks, additional recycling facilities and new office buildings. The facilities would need additional water and sewage services.
Waste Management's project is subject to the California Environmental Quality Act, which was enacted to inform residents and governmental leaders about the potential environmental effects of proposed projects.
As outlined by CEQA, the county Planning Department is the lead agency for Waste Management's project and is responsible for ensuring the application meets county requirements and CEQA guidelines.
The landfill sits on unincorporated land off Madera Road, just outside Simi Valley city limits.
But the proposed expansion would have environmental impacts on Simi Valley, and the project has been scrutinized by the community since the application was submitted more than a year ago.
In February, Simi Valley forwarded more than 70 questions from City Council members, residents and a citizen task force to be included in the research for the EIR.
Smith said Ventura County currently can handle about 4,000 tons of trash per day, but in five years it's expected to generate about 4,500 tons.
But the Simi Valley Landfill Expansion Task Force, a citizen committee spearheaded by Councilwoman Barbra Williamson, noted a recent report from the county Public Works Department states 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."
The county's scoping meeting will be at 6 p.m. June 2 at Simi Valley City Hall, 2929 Tapo Canyon Road.
Posted by caskier on May 21, 2008 at 8:14 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Please stop this landfill expansion now!! As a 30 year resident of Simi, we have done our part. Time to move it somewhere else in the county. I am sick of the garbage lining the roads, the slow rumbling trucks blocking traffic flow and the HORRIBLE smell. Let another community share the waste for the next 20 years.
Posted by rg on May 21, 2008 at 10:54 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I would have preferred the project proposed by the previous owners, but thanks to SOAR this is what we get instead.
Actually, I don't have a problem with them expanding the landfill, but only if it is restricted to waste originating in Ventura County. Simi Valley doesn't need to be known as the L.A. County trash dump.
Posted by richardfalconer on June 3, 2008 at 4:38 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Do we know how many trucks will be added to the 118 should this project move forward to completion? Does this include trucks taking recycling back out of the facility to be handled elsewhere?
With the additional height requested has a name been selected for the new peak?
Can "LA" garbage be banned? Could fees that would make oil companies jealous be added based on distance from site? Could these fees be kept in the immediate area so they could do some good?
Could the city (or park & rec) annex and/or use eminent domain and keep 95% of the land open space or as park use? Let the land fill keep 5% around the current space.
What's next for Simi? I hear there is a need for prison space. Perhaps we should build the largest one in southern CA! Oh heck, let's make it the largest in the nation. After that we need to get the largest nuclear power plant we can . After all, some of our hills have been preconditioned for such activities.
Think of all the $$ that would be pumped into the economy if we make it all happen. That's what we deserve, I mean want right?
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