Council receives report on septage hauling; sanitation bureau says new facility handling ~35 trucks a day

The Los Angeles City Council on Feb. 1 received and filed a committee report on private septic waste hauling and septage management, concluding a lengthy committee review while directing further committee oversight of remaining enforcement and source-level issues.

Council member Mike Padilla introduced concerns raised in a recent public works committee meeting about septic tanks and private-property systems in parts of the Seventh District where sewers are not connected. Padilla cited reports of overflows, inadequate maintenance and spillage and asked staff how the city was handling safety and maintenance concerns.

Jim Langley, assistant director of the Bureau of Sanitation, told the council the city's septage hauler program — adopted by council in April 1998 and implemented in September of that year — provides a controlled disposal facility adjacent to the Donald C. Tillman plant and is receiving approximately 35 trucks a day. Langley said the program screens loads, samples for hazardous material and is operating smoothly; the bureau expects to report back in September with any recommended changes to the program, fees or rates.

Council members pressed staff on whether loads accepted at the city facility originate inside or outside city limits; staff said haulers bring waste from both inside and outside the city and that the bureau charges higher rates for out-of-city waste. Padilla and others emphasized that the city's authority does not extend to private property maintenance; overflow or leaking septic tanks on private property are referred to the health department for enforcement.

Several council members asked about nonlicensed or illegal dumpers and whether the city had evidence of continued illegal dumping outside the designated disposal sites. Bureau staff said they had not received reports of systematic illegal dumping by licensed haulers and that haulers are required to discharge only at the designated city site. Council member Bernstein urged continued investigation and stronger enforcement mechanisms if private-property systems were causing public health hazards.

The council voted to receive and file the committee report and reiterated that the public works and environmental quality committees would continue to review the broader set of source-level issues, including possible sewer extension programs and targeted enforcement of unlicensed haulers. The motion to receive and file item 6 passed on a recorded vote of 14 ayes.

Council members asked the Bureau of Sanitation to investigate specific complaints and to provide status reports to the appropriate committees; council members also indicated they will seek additional committee-level review of source control and sewer-extension options where septic tanks remain the primary system.