Sludge Watch ==> Kern County says Los Angeles is a lousy neighbor

[Maureen Reilly]

Sludgewatch Admin:

You can just about hear the chuckles from the Los Angeles sludge barons from 
here.  But feisty Kern County is appealing the judge's ruling that side with 
LA.  The new air emissions regulations should help limit sludging practices 
in Kern.

What San Bernardino County needs is to adopt the same air quality controls 
on sludge composting that have been adopted in Kern County.  Air emissions 
from composted and land applied sludges need to be controlled.  Mercury, 
particulate, volatile organic compounds, greenhouse gases are all a problem 
from composted and land applied sludge.



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Hardisty column

Saturday, Sep 1 2007 8:30 PM


Kern County supervisors are taking to a higher court their fight against Los 
Angeles dumping millions of gallons of sludge a year onto farmland south of 
Bakersfield.

Last month, a federal judge in Los Angeles overturned Kern County's 
voter-imposed ban on smearing human and industrial waste on farmland.

Acknowledging the merit of environmental concerns about sludge, the judge 
sided with the city of Los Angeles, ruling that Measure E violates commerce 
protections in the U.S. Constitution. Kern County supervisors are appealing 
the ruling to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.

The appeal is expected to take about two years maybe longer if the battle 
moves all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Meanwhile, the city of Los Angeles can keep hauling its sludge a goo scraped 
from the bottom of sewage treatment plants to the property it owns near the 
intersection of Interstate 5 and Highway 119.

Los Angeles has named its dumping field "Green Acres Farm," which Los 
Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa characterizes as a "good neighbor" to 
Kern County residents.

Legislation designed to protect the ability of urban areas, such as Los 
Angeles, to dump on their rural neighbors limits local governments from 
regulating these operations. And "blanket" statewide rules limit the 
enforcement of odor laws and water pollution controls.

But the federal judge's ruling last month left in place Kern County's 
earlier sludge oversight ordinance, which calls for inspecting and testing 
waste, and limits disposal to "exceptional quality."

Likely the greatest safeguard Kern County residents can anticipate barring 
the Measure E ban is a rule adopted in March by the San Joaquin Valley Air 
Pollution Control District. The rule was part of a larger effort targeting 
emissions that make the valley one of the most polluted air basins in the 
nation.

Rule 4565 (which has been posted with this column on the Opinion section's 
Fired Up! blog at www.bakersfield.com) is designed to reduce the amount of 
volatile organic compounds (gas-like fumes) released into the air by those 
who apply sludge to the land, as well as composting facilities. Until this 
district rule was adopted, these operations generally escaped air pollution 
control scrutiny.

Sludge and composting operators, such as the one harvesting Los Angeles' 
"crop" at the Green Acres Farm, have until March 2008 to submit plans to the 
air district to cut VOC emissions and by extension reduce odors. They have 
until September 2008 to implement those plans.

Ways to cut obnoxious and polluting gases from simmering off the piles of 
human and industrial waste at the Green Acres Farm include injecting the 
waste under a soil cover, mixing it with a material and then working it into 
the soil, or covering it. The most encouraging aspect of this rule is that 
it will give the air district enforcement authority.

Controlling air pollution from sludge spreaders and composting operations is 
"a priority for the district," said Jaime Holt, chief communications 
officer.

She urged Kern County residents who have complaints about the Green Acres 
Farm, as well as other sludge disposal and composting facilities in Kern 
County, to contact the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District.

Dianne Hardisty is The Californian's editorial page editor. E-mail 
dhardisty at bakersfield.com

http://www.bakersfield.com/opinion/columnists/dianne_hardisty/story/226407.html



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Californian readers tell Los Angeles mayor his 'farm' is lousy neighbor
Batch Data Processor | Saturday, Sep 1 2007 8:30 PM
Last Updated: Saturday, Sep 1 2007 8:36 PM

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa claims his city is being a "good 
neighbor" to Kern County residents in its operation of its Green Acres Farm 
near the intersection of Interstate 5 and Highway 119. The farm is the 
dumping ground for millions of gallons a year of Los Angeles' sludge human 
and industrial waste scraped from the bottoms of Los Angeles sewage disposal 
plants.

At The Californian's urging, readers are writing Mayor Antonio (e-mail 
mayor at lacity.org) to explain what they expect in a "good neighbor" and why 
Los Angeles' smelly sludge farm isn't a "good neighbor."

Some reader letters to Mayor Antonio follow:

Mr. Mayor:



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We have been the butt of Los Angeles for far too long -- pun very much 
intended. Carson made much use of us, but we are not laughing now. You may 
have won in the courts, sir, but here in our city and county, public opinion 
is against you.

Look to your family, friends and neighbors. We grow the food you eat. Do you 
really want to eat that? We have to breath it, bath in it and drink it once 
that enters our aqua filters.

You may think of us hicks as your wastebasket. But we are your food basket. 
When your citizens become sick and diseased, when the rest of the country 
feels the effects of your sludge, you will have to answer.

I hope you do not plan to seek higher office.

-- DANA D. ACOSTA



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If I remember the judge's wording, it was all about the need for recycling 
in the beginning. The most efficient recycling is to burn the sludge on the 
site of generation and reclaim the energy. That drops out the spread of 
pathogens, antibiotic resistance, endocrine disrupters, pharmaceuticals, 
greenhouse gasses, transport pollution, soil pollution.

In addition, the discharged effluent coming out of the sewer plant and going 
to the ocean is actually cleaner if the solids are taken off first and 
burned to produce a syn-fuel. All the above is verifiable within the current 
scientific literature.

EDO MCGOWAN



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In June 2003, my wife and I moved to Bakersfield from El Segundo, where I 
had resided for over 42 years. During that time, we came to get used to 
being called "El Stinko," as it was right next door to the Los Angeles 
Hyperion Plant.

They had more than their share of operating problems, but the city of Los 
Angeles never got the blame for the smell. As it went through El Segundo 
first, that city got the notoriety.

Now you're doing the same thing to me here in Bakersfield. The powerful 
people controlling the ocean in particular the Santa Monica Bay stopped the 
Hyperion from dumping the refuse into the ocean. Next move: Let's truck it 
to our "friendly" farm in Kern County, just south of Bakersfield. Here comes 
the same old "crappy" smell again. Thank you so much!

I know that my voice doesn't carry any weight with you "big time" 
politicians, but I just can't keep this to myself any more. You really don't 
care, do you? It is out of your backyard and it falls into the category of 
out of sight, out of mind.

I don't think you are a very friendly neighbor, but then that might hurt 
your career and that has always been very big for you.

NORM HANSEN



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Los Angeles County has plenty of open space and they should spread their 
smelly sludge on their own "Green Acres" farmland in Los Angeles. That would 
also keep some of their trucks off the I-5.

MARY FARMER



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I live in Bakersfield and I can tell when you dump that human waste/chemical 
"sludge" up here. On some mornings when I open my windows (too hot any other 
time of day!) I am almost overcome with that sickening smell.

I absolutely can't describe it to you, but years back when we began to smell 
it, one of my neighbors told me my next door neighbor's septic tank must be 
continually overflowing and affecting the entire neighborhood. That turned 
out not to be the case.

I do wish you could come up here to smell it sometime, and I believe you'd 
agree that it's too much for people living in a community of about a 
half-million to have to endure -- to say nothing of what it's probably doing 
to our groundwater and farmland!

I know the city of Los Angeles has a real problem with waste, but can't you 
truck it out to the desert where people living in a large city can't smell 
it, and where contamination of the groundwater wouldn't be as important?

This is an unbearable situation. I can't believe your huge city can come in 
here like a bulldozer and screw up our environment like this! Please, try to 
resolve this another way. Our air up here is already plenty bad enough 
without the nauseating morning sludge aroma!

I understand you consider yourself to be an environmentally sensitive 
politician. If you have future ambitions to represent people other than 
those in Los Angeles, I think it would be wise for you to come up with a 
different solution that won't totally alienate the entire population of the 
southern and central San Joaquin Valley.

After all, our growth rate is now huge compared with other areas of 
California -- and there will be a lot of voters up here who will remember! 
Please reconsider what you're doing to the San Joaquin Valley!

BETTY A. JACOBS



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It was distressing to read your comments regarding the need for Los Angeles 
and Kern County officials to turn their attention away from sludge dumping 
to other matters in the "best interests" of residents. Hello, isn't stopping 
Los Angeles sludge slop in my "best interest?" Heck, yes!

Word has gotten around that you have a yen to be governor of our state. If 
so, it would be wise for you to show concern for Central Valley residents, 
who voted overwhelmingly against accepting L.A. poop. We do have a lot of 
votes here and we won't forget a big city politician who regards us as 
powerless country bumpkins!

MARGE MINNER



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OK mayor, enough is enough. The voters of Kern County have spoken and we do 
not want your sludge here. Take your crap and shove it! It is stinky and 
nasty and makes a mess of our ground and God knows what else it is doing to 
our land. We will fight this to the bitter end!

ROBERT R. HYLTON



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Don't look now, but there's a whole bunch of open land just east of Los 
Angeles. Nothing's out there but bugs and snakes. Just think how fertile 
you'll make that land by dumping your "good neighbor" policy on it!

DWAYNE HUTSON



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I write this as a "good neighbor" who lives in Ridgecrest. A great place for 
your "sludge" would be north on Highway 14. Just past Lancaster you have 
acres of land from Avenue I to Avenue A (all in L.A. county) either side of 
the freeway.

DIXIE CHANTLER



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I would like to know this: where are all of your city's liberal Democrats? 
Where are the sandal-wearing, hybrid-driving, anti-pollution, tree huggers? 
It seems to be OK with them if their own city is dumping their own waste in 
someone else's backyard! Normal behavior for a liberal -- do as I say, not 
as I do!

DENNIS HALL



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You are not "a good neighbor." Keep your crap in your own backyard. The 
people in Kern County voted on and passed Measure E. Does that mean anything 
to you, Mr. Mayor?

NORMA SACCHINI



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After reading of your city's desire to be "good neighbors" to the people of 
Kern County, I had to laugh. Most of the people of Los Angeles don't have a 
clue of what it's like to be neighbors with anyone, as witnessed daily when 
I do business in Los Angeles. I refer to it as a fine example of man's 
inhumanity to man.

The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power's taking of water from the 
Owens Valley and resulting closing off of public and private land in the 
early 1900s left that area's residents with little quality of life. Is that 
what Los Angeles calls being a "good neighbor?"

You and your powerful friends in Sacramento are and will continue to be the 
opposite of what you say. It follows you and people like you like the circus 
you've created in California. You should be ashamed of yourselves!

T.H. ZOOK



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Talk about going against the wishes of the people, Mr. Mayor! The people in 
Kern County all voted for you to keep the sludge out of Kern County! How 
dare you go against that and disrespect the voters' wishes.

You have shown us more than once that you are a mayor without scruples. The 
only place for this sludge to go is to your own backyard. Keep that junk 
away from us please.

MARDI HINSE
http://www.bakersfield.com/opinion/letters/story/226408.html