Assemblywoman Pilar Schiavo (D-Chatsworth) and community members, including neighbors being made sick by the Chiquita Canyon Landfill, released a critical health study and CA Hot Landfill Map at a press conference on Thursday, Nov. 13, demonstrating the urgent need for strong updated methane regulations by the California Air Resources Board to prevent future landfill disasters.

Families near Chiquita Canyon Landfill, which has an ongoing 90-acre underground landfill fire, continue to report persistent health impacts, including nausea, headaches, respiratory distress, nosebleeds, tremors, miscarriages, heart irregularities, cancer and neurological symptoms, due to continued emissions and toxic leachate production.

It is because of this continued crisis that the Community Assessment for Public Health Emergency Response (CASPER) study was carried out by California Communities Against Toxics, leading to Schiavo and community leaders calling for swifter action to protect public health and for the California Air Resources Board to enact strong regulations that include modern methane leak detection methods, increased public transparency, and tools to ensure landfill compliance.

“Yesterday, we stood just feet from the Chiquita Canyon Landfill, where disaster rages on and is making our community sick on a daily basis. The continual release of cancer-causing gasses and noxious fumes have resulted in miscarriages, tremors, and more. The disaster at Chiquita Canyon could’ve been avoided, but unfortunately, it has now become a canary in the coal mine. I joined with impacted community members to urge CARB to protect other communities, especially those who could be next,” said Schiavo. “We are calling on CARB to not only stand firm in their proposal to catch other landfills before they become an emergency, but also to make sure that the regulations have the teeth necessary for CARB to take action against landfills that aren’t fixing problems. This is especially important with 11 landfills already being allowed to operate above temperatures laid out in federal regulations.”

“The science is clear and the impacts are undeniable. The Chiquita Canyon Landfill has shown us what happens when high-temperature reactions, methane leaks, and toxic emissions go unchecked,” said Jane Williams, Executive Director of California Communities Against Toxics. “CARB must adopt rules that require continuous monitoring, rapid leak detection, and enforcement with consequences. Communities cannot wait another 15 years for action — they need protection now.”

“Every day, our families are forced to breathe air that makes our kids sick and our neighborhoods unlivable. We’re asking CARB to stand with us, to make sure no other community has to suffer what we’re enduring here at Chiquita Canyon,” said Jennifer Elkins, impacted resident and community leader. “Data transparency that is easily accessible, fence-line monitoring, and real-time public notifications are essential to protecting communities.”

On Thursday, Nov. 20, the California Air Resources Board will hold a public hearing considering the proposed updates to the landfill methane regulations. Additional information on how to watch the hearing virtual is posted on CARB’s meeting webpage. In addition to calls for updated regulations at CARB, Schiavo continues work on the Landfill Safety Act (AB 28), a bill aimed at strengthening the response of all agencies with authority over landfills in California to detect and prevent disasters like Chiquita Canyon from happening in the first place.

The full video from the Nov. 13 press conference can be found here.

The Chiquita Canyon Landfill Fact Sheet detailing results of the CASPER study can be found here.