(Los Angeles, CA) – Earlier today, Assemblymember Miguel Santiago (D-Los Angeles) demanded information from the California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) and the City of Los Angeles’ Department of Building and Safety regarding dust from the demolition of a warehouse near the now-shuttered Exide battery recycling facility.
The property, located at 3820 East Union Pacific Avenue, is within the area being tested and remediated by DTSC for lead contamination from the Exide facility. The South Coast Air Quality Management District (AQMD) issued a Notice of Violation to the property owner for not taking proper steps to mitigate dust.
“I am dismayed that contaminated dust from the demolition may have drifted to nearby residential properties,” said Assemblymember Santiago (D-Los Angeles). “It is absolutely unacceptable that our communities—poor, working class, and heavily Latino communities—are frequently and repeatedly confronted with environmental injustices that they have no control over.”
Via letter, Assemblymember Santiago called on both DTSC and the City of Los Angeles to provide information as to: whether the City consulted with DTSC before approving demolition; if processes are in place for consultation between public agencies on similar projects; and if dust from the demolition migrated to nearby properties.
Last year, Assemblymember Santiago, who represents the neighborhoods most impacted by exposure from Exide, authored Assembly Bill 118 to expedite $176.6 million in funding for the purposes of testing, clean-up, and job-training in the community. The Exide Technologies battery recycling facility in Vernon, CA operated for over 90 years – the last 33 on a temporary permit from DTSC. The Exide facility finally closed in 2015, under an agreement with the federal government.
Copies of both letters referenced above are attached.
Assemblymember Santiago is the Chair of the Assembly’s Communications and Conveyance Committee. He represents the 53rd District composed of the cities of Los Angeles, Huntington Park, and Vernon.
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Assemblymember Santiago Demands Answers on Demolition near Exide Press Release