This post was originally published on this site
The cities of San Clemente and San Juan Capistrano—both of which neighbor the Prima Deshecha Landfill—voiced their perspectives on the landfill’s upcoming expansion late last week by submitting letters to Orange County Waste & Recycling (OCWR), the facility’s owner and operator.
The comments come during the Notice of Preparation (NOP) period for the composition of a Subsequent Environmental Impact Report (SEIR) for the proposed project, known as the Increase in Maximum Daily Operations at Prima Deshecha Landfill.
The proposal would double the daily maximum tonnage Prima Deshecha receives, from 4,000 tons per day (TPD) to 8,000 TPD, and establish 36 days per year for allowing the landfill to receive more than its daily limit for various possible reasons.
San Clemente expressed concerns related to impacts on air quality, hazardous materials, noise and more; San Juan Capistrano mentioned fire protection services, impacts to cultural resources significant to local Native American tribes, and traffic.
Both cities broached overlapping topics and requested to be included in the phases of the expansion to come.
“Given the project’s proximity to (Forster Ranch and Talega) there is increased interest concerning the potential for these impacts to affect residents in these areas,” wrote Dave Rebensdorf, San Clemente utilities director.
San Juan Capistrano Principal Planner Paul Garcia detailed four specific comments on behalf of the city, after a review of the NOP and the proposal’s Initial Study.
The City of San Juan asked to be designated as a “Responsible Agency” for the project due to its proximity and potential need to issue permits. The city also requested the SEIR to further evaluate four topics, for specifications within the traffic study, and for analyses to assume that Los Patrones Parkway will be extended.
Garcia wrote that the Initial Study didn’t contain substantial evidence that supported the conclusions that the project wouldn’t result in potentially significant impacts related to wildfire, and that the project wouldn’t add to the number or severity of impacts to public services and tribal cultural resources.
Regarding the traffic study, Garcia included six requests: the calculation of the existing daily number of trips for the 4,000-TPD facility and the projected number for 8,000 TPD; calculating LOS (length of service) to determine the how well vehicle traffic flows near various intersections in San Juan Capistrano, conducting a VMT (vehicle miles traveled) analysis and identifying mitigation measures.
For San Clemente, Rebensdorf wrote that the city requested additional discussion in the SEIR about findings classified as having “No Impact” or “Less than Significant with Mitigation Measures Incorporated.”
Over roughly the last month, several developments related to the project have occurred, an increase in activity for the expansion of the landfill the Orange County Board of Supervisors approved in January 2022.
The board amended the Prima Deshecha Landfill General Development plan to include Zone 4 of the area’s five zones as operational, pushing the estimated closure date from 2050 to 2102.
In late September, the board awarded an approximately $88 million contract to Sukut Construction for the Prima Zone 4 Phase A Mass Excavation and Liner Project. The project would consist of excavating close to 7 million cubic yards of dirt and rock and constructing a protective liner, in addition to other tasks.
OCWR also hosted local residents for a public scoping meeting on the SEIR on Oct. 4, and the County of Orange Solid Waste Local Emergency Agency (LEA) published a notice on Oct. 17 regarding its acceptance of an application from OCWR.
The document included proposed design and operational changes, such as adding a second on-off ramp to the facility, and was submitted to a corresponding Report of Facility Information.
