Residents alarmed after officials reveal plan for massive landfill expansion: '[We] sneeze frequently throughout the day and have chronic coughs'

Local residents have sounded the alarm after noticing a massive landfill expansion taking place with little public notice. 

What's happening?

In Orange County, California, hundreds of locals began flooding the office of Katrina Foley, a county supervisor, with complaints when they noticed construction taking place to expand an existing landfill, Voice of OC reported. 

Though the plan had received little publicity, officials commenced with an effort to double the daily load of trash dumped at Prima Deshecha, a landfill located in San Juan Capistrano. Under the plan, the daily limit would double from 4,000 tons to 8,000 tons.  

While residents have remained skeptical, local officials have argued that the expansion is necessary due to the upcoming closure of one of the county's three currently operating landfills. 

"The landfill system capacity is decreasing with the upcoming closure of OAL," Tom Koutroulis, the director of OC Waste and Recycling, wrote in a statement to Voice of OC, referring to the soon-to-be-shuttered Brea Olinda Alpha landfill. "The proposed increase is intended to support essential waste disposal needs within the county."

Why is it important?

With an environmental impact report citing plans to keep the landfill open at least until 2102, any impact of the expansion will be felt for decades to come. The report found that people living near the landfill would experience "significant and avoidable" effects and that it would "substantially increase the impacts related to air quality." 

Locals have already begun to experience these effects.

"Dust from the winds is blowing into my neighborhood," complained one resident via the county reporting portal, per Voice of OC. "The current grading is creating loose dust/dirt and it's not being properly [mitigated]." 

"Both myself and my son sneeze frequently throughout the day and have chronic coughs and heavy congestion in our sinuses at night making it difficult to sleep," wrote another local. "We are deeply concerned as to what will be the long term consequences of this." 

What's being done about it? 

Despite the widespread concerns, which led to the cancellation of a public meeting on the topic, officials have said they intend to proceed with the landfill expansion. 

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"I just wanted to clarify this is not the cancellation of the project," said Michelle Aguirre, the county CEO, according to Voice of OC. "Just the public meeting."

Orange County residents have not been alone in facing a controversial landfill expansion project. In Maine, locals and environmental activists have opposed a planned expansion of a landfill in that state.

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