Finally we know where toxic ash from the L.A. wildfires could end up

Despite repeatedly warning that wildfire debris likely contains hazardous substances, public officials are preparing to dump millions of tons of contaminated ash and rubble from the Eaton and Palisades fires into Southern California landfills that were not designed to handle high concentrations of toxic chemicals. At a news conference this week, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced that federal cleanup crews began removing debris from several schools damaged by the Eaton fire, hauling toxic ash to the Simi Valley Landfill in Ventura County and asbestos and concrete to Azusa Land Reclamation in Los Angeles County. But, in addition to the Simi Valley Landfill and the Azusa Land Reclamation site, The Times has learned that at least five other nonhazardous waste landfills have taken steps to accept this waste: Badlands Sanitary Landfill in Moreno Valley; Calabasas Landfill in Agoura; El Sobrante Landfill in Corona; Lamb Canyon Landfill in Beaumont; and Sunshine Canyon Landfill in Sylmar. “The reason they make landfills,” said Hunter, “is because they don’t want the kind of material that they’re now trying to shove into them.” Although quickly removing the fire debris provides relief for the disaster-gripped communities of Altadena and Pacific Palisades, Hunter hopes public officials consider the potential fallout that could occur in his community and others neighboring potential disposal sites sprinkled across Southern California.