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Landfill
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State panel approves
Gregory Canyon permit
By
Bill Ainsworth December 15, 2004 SACRAMENTO – A permit for the proposed Gregory
Canyon landfill was approved by the state's Integrated Waste Management Board
yesterday, eliminating a major hurdle for the project. A 3-2 majority of the voting board members, after
hearing three hours of testimony, agreed that the proposed landfill had met
the state's environmental standards. Rosalie Mule, a board member who voted for the
permit, said growth is coming to San Diego County, "and we're going to
have to address the solid waste needs." Richard Chase, project manager for Gregory
Canyon, the investment partnership that has spent about $20 million so far to
develop the landfill welcomed the decision. "We're obviously very pleased. They did the
right thing," he said. The permit from the board, which oversees
landfills and encourages recycling, is the most important for the project by
far, Chase said. But the landfill still must be approved by
agencies that regulate air pollution and water quality. It must also survive
a court challenge to its environmental impact report. Barry Martin, water utilities director for
Oceanside, which opposes the landfill, expressed disappointment, especially
because the board is part of California's Environmental Protection Agency. "They are here to protect the
environment," he said. "I think they let us down." Mule was impressed with the public support for
the project, which was demonstrated in two countywide election victories, in
1994 and last month. "The voters have spoken, not once, but twice,"
she said. Mule and board members Carl Washington and
Rosario Marin voted to approve the project. Board members Michael Paparian
and Linda Moulton-Patterson voted against the permit, saying it would
endanger sacred tribal sites, threaten water supplies, increase air pollution
and harm endangered species. They also said increasing recycling and expanding
existing landfills in the county are better alternatives. "It's clear
that there is no need for Gregory Canyon landfill," Paparian
said. Cheryl Peace, a board member from San Diego
County, recused herself, saying a firm that
provides income to her husband, former state Sen. Steve Peace, had been hired
by opponents of the landfill during the November ballot campaign. Peace said she had strong feelings on the issue,
but she wanted to avoid "even the appearance of a conflict of
interest." In an interview outside the board meeting room, she declined
to discuss the issue further. The proposed landfill in Pala
is off state Route 76 about three miles east of Interstate 15. It would take
up about 320 acres of a 1,770-acre parcel. The remaining acreage would become
a nature preserve. If built, Gregory Canyon could accept a million
tons of trash a year for about 30 years. North County, which now has no
operating landfill, generates about 800,000 tons of garbage a year. "North County needs a landfill," Bill
Hutton, a lawyer for project proponents told the board yesterday. Hutton said the landfill would serve North
County, but he refused a request from Paparian to
accept a ban on accepting trash from outside the county. Cheryl Reiff, a
volunteer coordinator for the Sierra Club's San Diego chapter, which opposes
the landfill, said those positions are inconsistent. "That smells fishy
to me," she said. In last month's campaign, opponents of the
landfill charged that the developers plan on accepting trash trucked in from
Los Angeles. The proposed landfill is next to Gregory Mountain
and Medicine Rock, two sites considered sacred by the Pala
Band of Mission Indians. Their representatives urged the board to deny the
permit. "This is clearly a case of environmental
injustice," said Lenore Volturno, director of
environmental services for the Pala band. Other speakers said the landfill would be close
to the San Luis Rey River and a major aquifer and
would threaten water supplies used by the Pala
tribe and some North County cities. "Oceanside is lucky enough to have a local
water supply. In a desert, you know how precious that is," said Martin,
the Oceanside utilities director. "We're very concerned that these water
supplies will become contaminated." Proposition B on the Nov. 2 ballot was intended
to block the landfill but was rejected by more than 63 percent of voters
countywide. It was the most expensive ballot measure in county history, with
both sides spending more than $4.3 million on their campaigns.
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Bill
Ainsworth: