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San Jose Delays Report of Landfill Odors, Expansion Plans
2 Min Read
San Jose, Calif., commissioned a study of odors from the Newby Island Landfill as part of a review of a plan to expand the facility by 100 ft. But San Jose staffers say the report needs to be rewritten to make the findings more user-friendly for the public.
There’s been a long battle over the landfill’s proposed expansion and odor issues at the site.
Milpitas, Calif., hired a law firm back in February 2015 to potentially sue the operator of the site. A few days later, Republic Services of Santa Clara County formed the South Bay Odor Coalition to diminish the impacts to surrounding cities.
At the same time, the San Jose Planning Commission continued to delay its decision regarding the proposed expansion. Milpitas, in March of last year, filed an appeal over the expansion plans and in April declared the landfill a public nuisance. (It was later denied.)
In May, another delay came until a study of the landfills odors could be completed.
Lastly, in December, Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Peter Kirwan on Dec. 11 tentatively approved a settlement in a class action suit involving the landfill.
The San Jose Mercury News has more on the latest announcement:
"After reviewing the draft, which involves much technical analysis, staff have directed the consultant to summarize the findings in public-friendly language," said Cheryl Wessling, a spokeswoman for San Jose's planning department.
Saying the deadline for the draft report was April 30, she added Irvine-based Environmental Resources Management -- paid more than $151,000 to research odors in the area of the dump at 1601 Dixon Landing Road in San Jose, next to the Milpitas border -- submitted its assessment in March.
Wessling noted the primary purpose or scope of the odor assessment included "conducting a field study to collect air samples and assess ambient odor levels, then use the results to determine the potential odor impacts from the landfill through odor modeling and prepare a report."
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