Sludge Watch ==> L.A. gets temporary victory in sludge fight - 2 stories

[Maureen Reilly]

L.A. gets temporary victory in sludge fight
Ruling lets city, Orange County continue trucking waste to Kern

BY JAMES BURGER, Californian staff writer
e-mail: jburger at bakersfield.com | Tuesday, Nov 14, 2006

LOS ANGELES -- The city of Los Angeles and Orange County can continue 
spreading their treated sewage sludge on Kern County farmland under a 
tentative ruling issued Monday in U.S. District Court.

The ruling overturns, at least for now, the Measure E sludge ban passed by 
Kern County voters in June.

Judge Gary Feess said he believes state laws that push for recycling of all 
solid waste -- including sewage sludge -- take precedence over the Kern 
County ordinance that bans spreading treated human and industrial waste on 
unincorporated land in Kern County.

"It does not make sense. He is stripping people in Kern County of their 
right to plan for their future," said Kern County Supervisor Michael Rubio. 
"We will continue to fight him with all the resources we have to protect the 
citizens in Kern County."

Kern County attorneys argued that state water law, not the Integrated Waste 
Management Act, regulates the application of sewage sludge. They hoped the 
argument would sway Feess, who previously dismissed Los Angeles' claims that 
Kern's sludge ban violated state and federal water laws.

Kern County should not be forced to take Los Angeles sludge so the Southland 
city can meet its state-mandated recycling goals, said Kern County attorney 
Stephen Schuett.

Feess could reverse his decision after considering arguments made during 
Monday's morning session.

Attorneys for the city of Los Angeles claimed victory, saying they doubted 
the judge would change his tentative ruling.

Christopher Westhoff, attorney for the Los Angeles Department of Public 
Works, said the city treats 700 to 800 tons of sludge per day and sends it 
to Kern County where the city employs Kern residents to farm with the 
material.

"It is not disposal, it is beneficial reuse," he said. "It would put us out 
of compliance with the Integrated Waste Management Act if we had to landfill 
our treated sludge."

He said Judge Feess understood that the state's goal of recycling solid 
waste trumps Kern County's desire to ban Southland "biosolids."

Monday's tentative ruling would only allow the governments, sludge haulers 
and sludge spreaders that sued Kern County to continue applying sludge. It 
would not overturn existing Kern County ordinances that allow only Class A 
exceptional quality treated sludge on county farmland.

Kern County lawyers and supervisors put a good face on the defeat, saying 
the fight is not over.

"I don't consider that losing the first round," said Supervisor Ray Watson. 
"I think they are just holding off enacting (the ban)."

Feess' decision is not a final ruling in the case. He said he intends to 
send the case to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

"I suspect that the 9th will then certify this to the California Supreme 
Court," he said.

Supervisor Jon McQuiston said that's good news, since any decision Feess 
made was sure to be appealed there anyway.

"By referring it to the 9th we just eliminate a step," McQuiston said.

Supervisor Don Maben said the fight isn't over.

"They can continue to make exceptional quality (sludge) and pretty soon 
they'll get to keep it," he said.

State Sen. Dean Florez, who pushed for passage of Measure E, also said the 
fight will go on.

"It just shows how tough it is going to be to defeat Los Angeles and the 
sludge haulers, but it doesn't in any way mean that we have lessened our 
resolve to see this issue to the end," he said. "The voters have spoken and 
I'll stand with the voters over some judge any time."

-- Staff writer Jenny Shearer contributed to this report.

The story so far

Early 1990s-2005: Kern officials became aware of and progressively 
established more rules for the hauling of sewage sludge from Southern 
California into Kern. Some lawsuits filed by Southland agencies against Kern 
in the ’90s are still alive in the courts.

Summer 2005: State Sen. Dean Florez springs the idea of a voter initiative 
to ban sludge spreading in Kern after an attempted legislative compromise 
with Los Angeles implodes. Signatures are gathered before year’s end.

May: Los Angeles city officials approve spending $600,000 on outside lawyers 
to sue Kern if the sludge ban passes. The city attorney later ups the sum to 
$850,000.

June 6: Kern County voters overwhelmingly approve a ban on use of sewage 
sludge as fertilizer on county farmland.

Aug. 15: The city of Los Angeles and a coalition of sewage districts and 
private-industry sludge interests file a federal lawsuit against Kern’s 
ban.

Oct 16: U.S. District Court Judge Gary Feess issues a tentative ruling 
dismissing two of the six claims against Kern County.

Oct. 26: Kern County attorney’s receive formal notice of Feess’ ruling 
dismissing two Los Angeles claims that the Measure E sludge ban violates 
state and federal water laws.

Nov. 13: Judge Feess issues a tentative ruling stopping the Measure E ban 
from taking effect on the grounds that the California Integrated Waste 
Management Act overrules the county ban.

http://www.bakersfield.com/619/story/84050.html






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Judge to OK sludge transfer
Kern County vows to continue its fight to stop the dumping of tons of sewage 
from Los Angeles on farmland near Bakersfield.
By Stuart Silverstein, Times Staff Writer
November 14, 2006


Los Angeles appeared to win a round Monday in its legal battle to keep 
dumping 250,000 tons of sewage sludge every year on farmland near 
Bakersfield.

U.S. District Judge Gary Feess said he planned to issue a written ruling 
within a few days granting a preliminary injunction in favor of the city and 
its co-plaintiffs, including the sanitation districts for Los Angeles and 
Orange counties.

The judge's comments came in a case brought by the city of Los Angeles 
challenging a ban overwhelmingly approved in June by Kern County voters that 
would halt the dumping. The law, known as Measure E, was spurred by concerns 
that the processed human waste could contaminate underground water reserves, 
damaging agriculture and leading to serious public health problems.

But Feess, tentatively siding with an argument of the plaintiffs, said it is 
likely that Measure E conflicts with a state law intended to reduce the 
amount of waste dumped into landfills. Fees said he also would refer the 
issue to the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals for further review, and that 
it was likely to wind up in the hands of the California Supreme Court.

Christopher M. Westhoff, a Los Angeles city attorney handling the case, said 
he was pleased with the tentative ruling and saw little chance the judge 
would change his mind. Under state law, he said, "We're compelled to reduce 
and recycle our solid waste." He said the city is accomplishing that by 
applying the waste as fertilizer on the 4,200-acre Green Acres Farm owned by 
the city in Kern County.

But Bernard C. Barmann Sr., county counsel for Kern County, said he held out 
hope that Feess might reverse his stance and, if not, that the county would 
prevail on appeal. "I don't think it's a setback at all. It's simply the 
court reviewing the initiative ordinance," he said.

Barmann said the dispute revolves around whether the county has a right to 
protect its underground water and "the economic future of this valley. Or 
can we just be run over by a bunch of urbanites who already have ruined 
their environment?"

Feess' tentative ruling has no immediate effect on dumping in Kern County 
because Measure E would not take effect until 2007. But Westhoff said a 
ruling against Los Angeles would leave it with too little time to find 
another site for the waste.

http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/california/la-me-sludge14nov14,1,5150115.story?coll=la-headlines-pe-california&ctrack=1&cset=true

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