Today the L.A. City Council unanimously approved our game-changing Zero Waste L.A. program, which will implement a complete overhaul of commercial and multi-family waste collection and dramatically increase recycling throughout the city.

The program, which Councilmembers Paul Koretz and José Huizar introduced as a motion in 2010 and worked on during Huizar’s time as Chair of the Energy & Environment committee, will also ensure fair pricing, improve service and working conditions, and help us meet our zero waste goals for Los Angeles. Councilmember Nury Martinez helped usher this long-working policy as an advocate and the recently appointed chair of the E&E committee.

While 70% of L.A.’s waste comes from commercial and apartment buildings, this new program aims to reduce landfill disposal by 1 million tons per year by 2025 and reduce waste by 65% in all 11 of the City’s new service zones!

The program will also decrease food waste and provide all Angelenos with Blue Bin access, no matter where they live or work. The City of Los Angeles has the number one curbside single-family home recycling program in the nation, and now our commercial and multifamily recycling program is well on its way to becoming its equal. Thank you, Don’t Waste LA and all our partners!

The Hearing Board of the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) will hold several public hearings to consider the issuance of an Order for Abatement addressing odors from the Sunshine Canyon Landfill in Sylmar.

Below is the hearing schedule:

October 25, 26, and 27, 2016 and
November 2 and 3 at 9:00 am
South Coast Air Quality Management District
21865 Copley Drive
Diamond Bar, CA 91765

November 5, 2016 at 9:00 am
Plaza Del Sol Concert Hall
California State University, Northridge
(Please stop at information booth at Nordhoff and Lindley or Prairie and Zelzah for a free parking pass)
18111 Nordhoff Street
Northridge, CA 91330

Information on the Hearing Board proceedings is located at: www.aqmd.gov/home/about/hearing-board.

The District webpage dedicated to the Sunshine Canyon Landfill Facility can be accessed at www.aqmd.gov/home/regulations/compliance/sunshine-canyon-landfill/order-for-abatement.

For more information, please contact the Public Advisor at 909-396-2432 or via email at publicadvisor@aqmd.gov.

The Hearing Board of the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) will hold several public hearings to consider the issuance of an Order for Abatement addressing odors from the Sunshine Canyon Landfill in Sylmar.

Below is the hearing schedule:

Saturday, August 27, 2016, at 9:00 am
Valley Academy of Arts and Sciences
Multipurpose Room
10445 Balboa Blvd.
Granada Hills, CA 91344

September 6, 7, 8, 2016, at 9:00 am
Hearing Board Room
21865 Copley Drive
Diamond Bar, CA 91765

Saturday, September 10, 2016, at 9:00 am
Valley Academy of Arts and Sciences
Multipurpose Room
10445 Balboa Blvd.
Granada Hills, CA 91344

As the Councilmember of the Granada Hills community where the Sunshine Canyon Landfill is located, it has been my unfortunate predicament to see the odor issues at the landfill escalate, without having the jurisdiction necessary to mitigate the problem. I have served the Twelfth District through the previous South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) Stipulated Order of Abatement, and have been extremely disappointed at the lack of improvement in conditions despite myriad actions on the part of the City, Local Enforcement Agency and even the landfill operator.

In my position as a Sunshine Canyon Landfill Local Enforcement Agency (SCL LEA) Board Member, I requested the SCAQMD to form, organize and lead the SCAQMD Interagency Working Group on Sunshine Canyon Landfill Odor Mitigation, and requested collaboration from all of the member agencies in recognition that SCAQMD has the primary statutory jurisdiction over the control of odors at the landfill.

It is my sincere hope that the draft Order of Abatement be enforced so that the SCL LEA’s included recommendations can be fully implemented without the impediment of other government or regulatory agencies. This community has suffered enough.

-Mitchell Englander, Councilmember Twelfth District

Click here to read the full letter submitted at the AQMD Town Hall last night.

Click here to view the Order of Abatement.

SCAQMD will host a Town Hall Meeting to discuss air quality and odor issues related to Sunshine Canyon Landfill.

Thursday, August 18
6 p.m.

Van Gogh Elementary School, Auditorium
17160 Van Gogh Street
Granada Hills, CA 91344

The next Sunshine Canyon Landfill Local Enforcement Agency Board of Directors Meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, June 21, 2016 at 2:30 pm in # 201 (2nd Floor), University of West LA Law School, 9201 Oakdale Avenue, Chatsworth, CA  91311.

AGENDA: https://scl-cac.org/wp-content/uploads/docs/SCL-LEA_2016-06-21.pdf

The South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) will host a follow-up meeting regarding concerns expressed by community members at the town hall meeting held on April 21 on air quality and odor issues related to Sunshine Canyon Landfill located in Sylmar. We invite you to attend this meeting to hear from SCAQMD about updated activities at Sunshine Canyon Landfill and to provide us with your comments and input.

AGENDA: https://scl-cac.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/June9SCAQMDTownHallMeetingRESunshineCanyonLandfill.pdf

The SCAQMD is the government agency responsible for protecting your health from the impacts of air pollution. We believe that everyone should have equal protection. Please join us for this meeting.

For more information, please call Derrick J. Alatorre, SCAQMD Public Advisor at (909) 396-2432 or by email at publicadvisor@aqmd.gov.