The Associated Press’s Dorany Pineda
DUARTE, Calif. (AP) – Ceci Carroll said a rock-mining company in the San Gabriel Valley has contaminated the air with dust, not far from her home.
She is now concerned about a new possible source of pollution when they clear up the burned remnants from the wildfires in Los Angeles: a facility used to manage hazardous waste from the Eaton Fire.
Carroll, a 23-year resident of Duarte and a former member of the local school board, expressed concern for the community and the school districts in the area where they have children.
“We’re dealing with the hazardous materials and chemicals at the site,” she said. Parents are very worried.
Carroll is one of several locals from Duarte, Azusa, and the surrounding areas who are against the EPA using Irwindale’s Lario Park as a makeshift location to sort, package, and move potentially dangerous debris from the Eaton Fire.
On regular days, people use the federally owned land for equestrian trails, picnics, and horseback riding. These days, they are concerned about hazardous garbage that may contaminate the air or contaminate groundwater.
Thousands of vehicles, electronics, and houses in the Los Angeles area were scorched by the fires that started on January 7. The massive effort of clearing hundreds of tons of possibly dangerous items from the Eaton and Palisades fires has been started by the EPA. This includes materials that could become poisonous when burned, such as paints, insecticides, solvents, compressed gas cylinders, ammunition, and lithium-ion batteries from electric vehicles.
In a statement, Los Angeles County Supervisor Hilda Solis stated that the removal of these items shouldn’t come at the expense of causing a harmful environment for areas that are already disproportionately affected by pollution.
According to data from the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, the primarily Latino communities that are close to the site are subject to higher levels of particulate matter and ozone pollution than other places.
According to experts, hazardous trash is not always dangerous as long as safety precautions are taken and the waste is not kept on the property for years, despite neighbors’ worries.
Residents have questions about waste site
California Senator Susan Rubio and local mayors opposed to the site questioned state and federal officials in a town hall on Wednesday: How was the location selected? Why weren’t we informed or consulted? Why risk contaminating our neighborhoods by transporting toxic waste 15 miles (24 kilometers) from the burn zone? After it’s closed, what testing will take place?
The performing arts complex was packed with hundreds of inhabitants, and the hall was overflowing. Shut it down, they yelled! and yelled Get out of Altadena!
On Friday, January 31, 2025, air quality monitoring equipment is spotted at Lario Park, which is temporarily utilized by the EPA to handle hazardous pollutants from the Eaton Fire in Irwindale, California. (Photo by Damian Dovarganes for AP)
EPA coordinator Tara Fitzgerald informed the audience that emergency fire actions were being conducted at locations nearer the Eaton burn zone, such as the Rose Bowl and Pasadena’s Santa Anita Park. Due to its availability and suitability for their needs, they decided on the Lario Park location.
She underlined that the EPA has been carrying out this task throughout the state for years.
According to Fitzgerald, we took the identical approach to the Woolsey, Santa Rosa, and Napa fires, and the community was unaffected at any point during the procedure.
The Palisades and Eaton fires, however, are unheard of. According to an Associated Press study, they combined to burn more than twice as much urban acreage as the 2018 Woolsey Fire and the greatest urban area in California history.
EPA says protective measures being taken
The EPA stated that it will employ water trucks to manage dust, sample soil, monitor the air on a daily basis, and remove waste from the region.
The organization employs earthen berms, wattles, and other tools to prevent spills and lines the areas where materials are processed with plastic. Celeste McCoy of the EPA informed the county Board of Supervisors that the waste will be delivered on surface roadways rather than freeways, allowing trucks to move more slowly and safely. According to her, more areas are being considered, and the site is probably going to be used for fewer than six months.
The dangers of groundwater pollution, which takes a long time, are minimal with these precautions, according to Sanjay Mohanty, an associate professor at UCLA who has researched the impacts of wildfires on soil and water.
According to Mohanty, the pollutant must travel through many feet of soil and needs a lot of water to leach out of the system. Furthermore, they would not quickly move far into the soil even in the event of leeching.
He noted that although those dangers can also be reduced, the larger ones are soil and air pollution from potential dust emissions.
Residents should stay vigilant
Laura Jasso, a resident of Duarte, was not comforted by the meeting and was still angry about the lack of openness from federal and state representatives.
“When they’ve actually done this behind our backs, it’s difficult to have confidence,” she remarked.
In Irwindale, California, on Friday, January 31, 2025, household trash is unlawfully discarded on the San Gabriel River trail next to Lario Park. (Photo by Damian Dovarganes for AP)
Rachael Jones, professor and director of the UCLA Center for Occupational and Environmental Health, advised residents to keep an eye on the site while crews are working and inquire about emergency response plans, truck routes, and schedules, as well as how materials are being handled.
According to Jones, the community has a right to receive that information from the Army Corps and the EPA.
According to Jasso, her community is dedicated to holding the EPA responsible for maintaining public safety.
In the end, she stated, “We don’t want it here, and we’re going to keep fighting to not have it here.” However, the reality is that it is currently present. Therefore, we must simply accept our families’ worries and our pupils’ safety.
This item was written by Christopher Weber of the Associated Press.
The Walton Family Foundation provides funding to the Associated Press to cover environmental and water policies. All content is entirely the AP’s responsibility. Go to apnews.com/hub/climate-and-environment to view all of AP’s environmental coverage.
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