Committee raises health and fire-safety concerns over nearby landfill expansion

Members of the Community Safety & Welfare Committee spent substantial time on April 28 discussing a proposed expansion at a nearby landfill and potential environmental and public-health effects.

Committee members said the landfill operator seeks a permit increase from about 4,000 tons per day toward a higher ceiling and that current operations already pose public concerns. "We went out to the tour the other day...right now, Brea is permitted to have 8,000 tons per day...we're permitted to have 4,000 tons," one member said.

Speakers repeatedly flagged lithium batteries as a modern hazard. "Lithium is a real issue," a committee member said, recounting examples of landfills that have suffered repeated fires started by discarded batteries and noting smoldering fires can be difficult to extinguish. Members suggested mitigation measures such as in-home air filtration for nearby residents, on-site air monitoring, tighter controls on what is accepted, or enhanced sorting/separation before landfill disposal.

Committee members compared local permitting and traffic impacts with neighboring jurisdictions and questioned how increases would be noticed by residents, noting modest changes in daily truck counts could nonetheless produce cumulative effects. Members requested the city follow the environmental review closely and urged outreach to affected neighborhoods.

No formal action or vote on the landfill permit was recorded at the meeting; members asked staff to continue monitoring and to ensure community notifications and possible mitigation steps were pursued.