Category Archives: Newby Island Landfill

Stuff related to the Newby Island Landfill.

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Letter from Congressman Mike Honda

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Here’s an email response I received from Congressman Mike Honda (17th district).

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Congressman Mike Honda
Date: Thu, Mar 10, 2016 at 7:47 AM
Subject: Re: San Jose’s Republic’s Newby Island Landfill is Polluting Milpitas

Thank you for contacting me to express your concerns about the Newby Island Landfill and the odor problems that affect the area. I understand how pervasive the odor problem is and that it will soon become more pronounced as the weather becomes warmer.

As you know, the Newby Island Landfill on Dixon Landing Road receives and processes waste materials from businesses in the City of San Jose and from residences in about a dozen cities around Northern California. While the original plans for the landfill have it scheduled to close in 2025, the operator of the landfill, Republic Services, has applied to expand the landfill by increasing its height by 95 feet and allowing it to remain open until January 2041.

I share your concerns that the proposed expansion could have a serious impact on your community. Residents like yourself from Milpitas, North San Jose, and South Fremont have long voiced complaints about odors entering the community that impact your quality of life.

That is why I am pleased that the San Jose Planning Commission has delayed its decision about the project’s permit until an independent odor study can be completed. This study is expected to be completed in late April or early May of this year. It is important to have an independent study in addition to the one undertaken by Republic Services so the Planning Commission can know that the results are not biased.

I have also heard that residents have been calling the Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD) to report complaints, and I applaud these efforts, as the BAAQMD is the government office that is able to take direct action on this issue. Because of the community’s work, the BAAQMD has issued Public Nuisance Violations to both the Newby Island Landfill and Recyclery. These official notices of violation allow for legal action to be taken against air polluters under California state law.

It is important to note that the San Jose-Santa Clara Regional Wastewater Facility has also received a Notice of Violation. In addition to Newby Island, other facilities nearby, like the Wastewater Facility, Zanker facilities, and the local salt ponds and wetlands, may add to the problem, and we must make sure that all odor sources are addressed in finding a long-term solution to this problem.

At the federal level, I asked the Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) to have his agency join these efforts. The FWS can lend its considerable expertise with environmental protection and management to suggest additional mitigation measures that odor generators may employ to mitigate the nuisance. The FWS has joined the South Bay Odor Stakeholder Group and has installed sensors to monitor natural odor sources as part of the independent odor study.

My desire is to ensure that a thorough and independent odor study be completed and that all potential odor sources are addressed in order to ensure a long-term solution to this problem. The City of Milpitas and my constituents deserve their quality of life, and Newby Island and other potential odor generators in the area need to do what is necessary to mitigate their impacts on the community.

Please continue to report odors as soon as they are detected to the BAAQMD by calling 1-800-334-6367(ODOR). It is important to report odors as soon as possible on each day that the problem is observed so that an inspector from the BAAQMD can promptly be dispatched to the area to investigate. Through this process, we can officially document cases and gather the evidence we need to fully address this issue.

You can be sure that I will remain engaged in this process and give voice to the concerns of my constituents in Milpitas and surrounding areas. Thank you again for contacting me.

Mike

blog, Newby Island Landfill

San Jose Odor Area

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It is important to clarify that the “Milpitas Odor” is caused by odor sources located in San Jose.  The City of Milpitas has no control over the odor generators such as Newby Island Landfill, ZWED (organic digester facility), San Jose/Santa Clara Waste Water Facility (sewage plant), Zanker Landfill, and and the SF Bay Restoration project.  All these facilities are located outside Milpitas and in San Jose.  Newby Island Landfill has a Milpitas address because the access roads are in Milpitas, but it is a San Jose facility.

When talking to others not familiar with the pollution issues, refer to odor sources collectively as the San Jose Odor Area. This will reinforce the concept that the odors are produced by San Jose and not under Milpitas’ control.

Map of Odor
Milpitas Odor Map
Newby Island Landfill

Newby Island class-action settlement

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Dear Neighbors,

A class-action lawsuit against Newby Island Landfill regarding property damages has been tentatively settled pending approval by the Court. The settlement would include approximately 6,800 households within a 1.5 mile radius from the landfill (see map below).  As part of the settlement, Newby’s composting facility would either be closed or altered by the end of 2017.  $2.75 million would be allocated by Newby to mitigate odors over the next 5 years including enhancing or upgrading its gas collections system. Also $1.2 million in damages would be distributed with $650,000 to lawyers, $10,000 to named plaintiffs and remaining $540,000 to be prorated among households who file a claim by Feb 9,2016.

The settlement terms are inadequate. The Citizens Odor Action Group of Milpitas were not involved in negotiating the terms of the settlement. The negotiated terms strongly relies on Newby’s operators to make the final decision of any actions would be taken to mitigate the odor generated from the Newby facility with no assurance of odor relief or effectiveness. The 2-5 years time frame allotted for adopting improvement measures does not provide immediate relief either.

Republic’s Newby, the Defendants, continues to claim that they are not producing odor from their facility and as part of the settlement stated:

Defendants expressly deny any wrongdoing alleged in the Action, in the Complaint, or in other papers filed in the Action, and do not admit or concede any actual or potential fault, wrongdoing, or liability in connection with any facts or claims, which have been or could have been alleged against it in the Action.

Please review your options carefully and submit your decision by February 9, 2016.

Doing nothing is the worst possible decision one can make. If you live within the 1.5 mile radius from the landfill, you will be automatically included in the settlement.  However, you won’t get any money unless you file a claim form.  

Recommended actions include:

  1. EXCLUDE YOURSELF: If you decide to exclude yourself from the settlement, you must take action by Feb 9th, 2016. You can use the template provided below: http://tinyurl.com/NewbySettlementOpt-out. If you exclude yourself, you cannot write in to comment on the settlement terms.

We recommend that Residents with confirmed BAAQMD complaints should exclude yourself from the class settlement to retain full legal rights to sue and/or provide testimonies. This would preserve evidence of the 6 Regulatory Public Nuisance Violations and 90% BAAQMD confirmed complaints traced to Republic Services which can be used in future litigations.

  1. SUBMIT CLAIM AND COMMENT: If you are planning to be part of this settlement, submit a claim form, and write to demand stronger settlement terms like more odor improvement measures, higher payout, more accountability and no expansion until Newby’s odor is mitigated.  Also plan to attend the Final Fairness Hearing on Apr 29th. The distribution of the settlement funds may be as low as $80 per household (assuming all households file a claim).  It is documented in this lawsuit that homes within the 1.5 miles of the landfill is devalued by 5% which is $31,000 for a $640k house in Milpitas. Write in to tell the judge to deny the settlement so the lawyers could work harder to get a better deal for the residents.  The deadline for Comment is Feb 9th, 2016.

A Notice of Proposed Class Action Settlement has also been provided by the Court, please read this!

http://www.ldclassaction.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/168/2015/12/Newby-Notice-of-Proposed-Class-Settlement.pdf

You can read more about the settlement at the website below: http://ldclassaction.com/NewbyIslandLandFillSettlement

Here is a map of the included 1.5 miles radius:

http://www.ldclassaction.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/168/2015/12/Newby-221883e_ExhibitxHxxxMapxofxClassxArea.pdf

Newby Island Landfill

Two Companies bid for Garbage Disposal Contract

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At the Special Milpitas City Council Meeting on Jan 12th discussing the new Garbage Disposal Bids for the City of Milpitas, two companies submitted proposals to the city. Waste Management which would dump at the Guadalupe Landfill. Green Waste which use the Monterey Landfill with a transfer station in N. San Jose. Both proposals include convenient options similar to the existing free dump days. The Monterey Landfill had zero odor complaints and Guadalupe Landfill had 34 alleged/no confirmed. Newby Landfill has over 2000 odor complaints recorded by BAAQMD over the last year alone. Although Republic did not submit a disposal proposal, they did say that they may provide one as part of the collections proposal.

You can watch the Jan 12th, City council meeting at the link below, click on webcast which includes presentation from the two companies.
http://www.ci.milpitas.ca.gov/governme…/…/agenda_minutes.asp

Newby Island Landfill

Milpitas: Tentative settlement reached in lawsuit over Newby Island Landfill’s alleged odors – San Jose Mercury News

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A class-action lawsuit that alleges noxious odors, dust and air pollution emanate from the Newby Island Landfill and Resource Recovery Park on the Milpitas-San Jose border and harm area residents here has been tentatively settled.

Source: Milpitas: Tentative settlement reached in lawsuit over Newby Island Landfill’s alleged odors – San Jose Mercury News

Newby Island Landfill

EDITORIAL: Landfill owner’s $1.2 million settlement subject to sniff test – San Jose Mercury News

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The City of Milpitas’ history with periodic smells that waft our way from the direction of Newby Island garbage disposal grounds goes back almost to the 1954 birth of the city. Although there were far fewer residents who were holding their noses at that time, the dumpsite owned then by the local San Jose Scavenger Co. was a sad mess.

Source: EDITORIAL: Landfill owner’s $1.2 million settlement subject to sniff test – San Jose Mercury News

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An Important Step to Cleaning Up the Landfill

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Dear Neighbors and Friends,

Please don’t allow Republic’s Newby Island Landfill to continue to pollute our beautiful city for the next 20+ year. Let’s work together to send a strong message to both the Milpitas City Council and Republic services that change is needed. Help us take action by spreading the word about the current petition drive and emailing the elected officials listed below with your comments.

As you have noticed, the last few weeks have been extremely horrible in terms of odor.  At a recent meeting, Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD) confirmed that bio-solid waste is being moved from the sewage treatment plant into Newby, causing massive odor reports.

Who will be selected as the waste collector for Milpitas for the next 20+ years? The deadline for bids has just passed, and the reviews and subsequent voting by the city council members are set in December.

San Francisco Bay has been home to a number of landfills, all of which have been closed. The Newby Island Landfill in our backyard is the largest and last one remaining. Long-time Bay Area residents can recall, even when the other landfills were operating, none emitted odor as offensive as that from Newby. The odor was so bad that Milpitas was known as “Smell Pitas”. Yet, Newby Island has been repeatedly allowed to expand its operations. Currently, according from the data from BAAQMD, it accounts for 90% of confirmed odor complaints in Milpitas.

Why did this happen? Why was it allowed to stink for so long, even till today? Sure, the City of San Jose LEA did not effectively enforce environmental compliance. Sure, Newby landfill’s operator spent more money on public relations and donations to decision makers than on proper measures to contain odor and pollution. Sure, the decision makers were sponsored by Republic Services and made decisions in their favor. However, these decision makers are publicly elected officials. Ultimately, it was the public that collectively decided it was OK to live with the odor, and it was OK to live with the name “Smell Pitas”.

Today, Milpitas is by all measures an integral part of Silicon Valley. The city’s attractive location and top-notch city planning have put Milpitas on the national list of fastest growing cities. Milpitas also made the list of best in California for families.

There is no way we will tolerate an expansion of the Newby landfill. The City of Milpitas has made strides in fighting the Newby landfill. Earlier this year, it officially declared the landfill a Public Nuisance. It is only common sense that the residents refuse to pay to have their garbage sent to Newby, unless they withdraw the application to expand and clean up their act.

The council members have received letters supporting Republic Services to be awarded the contract for next 20+ years. Do you think doing so would help to stop the Newby expansion? We think the city should at least put them on leash by adding conditions to the contract.

We have gathered over 1,000 signers for the current petition. More of us need to be heard to make a real impact. We ask you to do the following:

  1. Spread the word, and get more folks to sign the petition www.tinyurl.com/newbypetition

  2. Write to Milpitas council members about your view on the imminent evaluation and decision on the next garbage hauler contract. The council members’ email addresses are:

Major Jose Esteves – jesteves@ci.milpitas.ca.gov
Vice Mayor Carmen Montano – cmontano@ci.milpitas.ca.gov
Councilmember Debbie Indihar Giordano – dgiordano@ci.milpitas.ca.gov
Councilmember Garry Barbadillo – gbarbadillo@ci.milpitas.ca.gov
Councilmember Marsha Grilli – mgrilli@ci.milpitas.ca.gov
Public Information Specialist Leslie Stobbe – lesliestobbe@ci.milpitas.ca.gov

If you email to the above officials and staff, please feel free to copy this comma separated list and paste to your recipient field:
jesteves@ci.milpitas.ca.gov, cmontano@ci.milpitas.ca.gov, dgiordano@ci.milpitas.ca.gov, gbarbadillo@ci.milpitas.ca.gov, mgrilli@ci.milpitas.ca.gov, lesliestobbe@ci.milpitas.ca.gov

Please CC to city clerk pcaronongan@ci.milpitas.ca.gov so it goes on public record.
You can also fwd or bcc us, so we have a copy of your email milpitas-odor-info@googlegroups.com

There is much more to be examined by the citizens. Is this city really the best place to raise a family? When you leave your children at the local school, do you realize that students will be breathing chemicals that may damage their neural system, and the school would do nothing about it? Some kids and adults in the city can no longer sense the smell that come from the dump. Where do the elected school board members stand on the odor reporting issue? Where do the elected council members stand on the landfill issue? Do you really trust them to make decision that have your best interest in mind? Only public comments and feedback can help steer the city council to making the right decisions. So let’s get involved and help make the city a better place to live, work and visit.

Together, let’s change our neighborhood. Join our discussion mailing list by sending an email to milpitas-odor-info+subscribe@googlegroups.com. Everyone is welcomed.

Milpitas Odor Info
milpitas-odor-info@googlegroups.com
http://milpitas-odor.info

blog, Newby Island Landfill

Dear Editor, No Contract with Republic

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http://tinyurl.com/newbypetition
[Letter sent to the Milpitas Post] Dear Editor,

The Sept. 25 issue of Milpitas Post is an epitome of irony. On the same page, one can find “Smells from Newby Island” voted as “The Worst Happening of Past Year” and Republic Services as “The Most Community Minded Company” among other accolades. I find it reminiscent of Enron being named America’s “Most Innovative Company” and “Best Companies to Work for” by Fortune magazine, the same year Enron was exposed for the worst corporate fraud in U.S. history.

Let’s focus on facts. Republic Services’ Newby Island is a toxic air and water polluter. In the last 12 months, Newby has received 17 regulatory violations from CalRecycle, San Jose Local Enforcement Agency, Bay Area Air Quality Management District, and Regional Water Quality Control Board. Bay Area Air Quality Management District had publicly attested that 90 percent of confirmed Milpitas odor complaints were traced to Newby Island. Even Milpitas City Council adopted a resolution on April 15 declaring Newby Island as a public nuisance. Its national environmental track record is worse — Republic’s Bridgeton, Mo. and Countywide, Ohio landfills have been burning for five and 10 years respectively and remain uncontained. On the labor record front, Republic still owes Newby Island employees and San Jose $19 million for violating its living wage policy.

Let’s not be swayed by Republic Services’ “generosity.” The $5,762 for four full-page Milpitas Post ads in the Sept. 25 issue, donations to community events and political campaigns are chump change for this $22 billion corporation that reaps tens of millions annually from the city’s 30-year garbage collection and disposal contract. It is appalling that Milpitas residents continue to pay higher than 10 cities in Santa Clara County for standard 35-gallon service while smelling decomposing garbage hauled from municipalities as far as Merced and Clovis into our city.

The landfill impacts to our environment and health are irreversible. It’s time we retire Newby Island (the last, oldest and largest landfill in San Francisco Bay) and work toward a zero waste future. The “Stop Newby Island Landfill Expansion” petition has more than 21,000 signatories. With Newby Island’s contract with City of Milpitas finally expiring, please support a new petition to stop its renewal at http://tinyurl.com/newbypetition.