Calabasas officials, residents raise alarms after wildfire debris is routed to local landfill

Calabasas officials and residents raised health and environmental concerns after Palisades wildfire debris was routed to the Calabasas Landfill, city leaders and a New York Times writer said in a recorded presentation and interviews.

Peter Kraut, mayor of Calabasas, said the city — which he described as "a small city of about 25,000 people" governed by five council members — has a long history with the landfill, which he said has operated since 1961 and predates the city. He said a 1980 lawsuit led to an agreement that the landfill would stop accepting hazardous waste and would operate as a Class III municipal landfill for household waste.

Kraut and the presenter described how recent wildfires that burned more than 40,000 acres created an urgent cleanup need. In the rush to remove debris, officials described decisions to send material to the nearest permitted facilities; the presenter said Calabasas was among the sites used. The presenter said this followed a decision by the State Water Resources Control Board, after the Woolsey fire, to allow residential landfills to accept fire debris — a policy change that prompted strong community backlash in Calabasas over the potential environmental effects of Palisades ash arriving at the landfill.

Nathaniel Rich, a writer for The New York Times interviewed by the presenter, said advocates have assumed the debris is "highly toxic," and he cited post‑9/11 follow‑up studies as a worst‑case comparison for long‑term respiratory and cancer risks. "You have to assume that it's highly toxic," Rich said in the interview.

Kraut outlined the city's response: Calabasas has filed a lawsuit challenging the decision and the city is seeking a prohibition on future deliveries of fire debris to the landfill. He said finishing that litigation is the best immediate step and that the city should also begin planning now for future wildfires and where debris will be handled in subsequent incidents.

The presenter and interviewees emphasized that, while removing debris quickly was necessary to protect coastal waters and support rebuilding, the choice to send debris to nearby municipal landfills raised environmental and health worries among residents and local officials. The presentation noted past operational issues at the site — odors, birds and truck traffic — but said those concerns were generally manageable until the recent wildfires altered the scope of waste handled at the facility.

The city is pursuing legal action; the presenter said officials hope the lawsuit will lead to restrictions on future debris deliveries. Next steps cited in the presentation include completion of the lawsuit and broader regional planning to set protocols for future wildfire debris management.