EPA adds fire cleanup site at beach

PACIFIC PALISADES

Use of Will Rogers site comes amid race to collect hazardous household waste

The parking lot at Will Rogers State Beach in Pacific Palisades will be used as the second site to collect hazardous waste from the Palisades fire. Drew A. Kelley — Staff Photographer

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By Sierra van der Brug

svanderbrug@scng.com

The Environmental Protection Agency is establishing a household hazardous waste staging site at Will Rogers State Beach, just days after representatives said the site had been proposed for such a use but rejected.

The cleanup site in the beach’s parking lot will be the second household hazardous waste staging site used for debris from the Palisades fire, California State Parks announced Wednesday.

It was unclear what led to the initial rejection of the beach as a staging site or what shifted to lead to the approval of the beach as an EPA site.

The first staging site was established near Topanga Creek on state park land that formerly housed the Topanga Motel, which burned in the Palisades fire.

This site drew concerns from Topanga residents who said the location is too close to the ocean, a creek and lagoon and is on land that holds significance for Indigenous tribes. They also complained of a lack of community input as the site was chosen and established. Staging is already underway at the Topanga site.

Many Topanga residents asked EPA representatives why Will Rogers State Beach had not been chosen as a staging site at a protest near the Topanga site Friday, given the beach’s proximity to the highly devastated Palisades neighborhood.

This site is a step forward for the EPA’s work in the first of two phases of debris removal, in which the agency is collecting household hazardous materials from burned homes, such as motor oil and batteries, and staging and separating the items before they are moved to long-term storage.

Malibu rejected a proposal to establish a household hazardous waste staging site near Malibu City Hall at the Bell lot near Webb Way and Civic Center Way. Alexis Brown, deputy city manager of Malibu, said the city would support the EPA’s request to the state that Will Rogers be used as a staging site.

Upon the approval of the new staging site Wednesday, Malibu Mayor Doug Stewart expressed approval that Will Rogers had been chosen, noting that Malibu’s leadership will continue to advocate for protecting the coast throughout this process and other aspects of recovery.

“The City of Malibu is grateful to California State Parks and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for working together to accelerate wildfire recovery efforts,” Stewart said in statement. “The addition of a second temporary EPA processing site at Will Rogers State Beach Parking Lot is an important step in ensuring hazardous materials are removed safely and efficiently, helping impacted residents move forward in rebuilding their homes.”

Los Angeles City Councilmember Traci Park, who represents the 11th District, which includes Pacific Palisades, took to Instagram to share her concerns about the site’s coastal location, which she described as a “highly sensitive” ecosystem.

“While I understand the removal process is essential to the mission, we absolutely cannot cause more damage or harm to our local wildlife or environment,” Parks said.

She believes that no beaches or waterways should be used in processes of staging, sorting, or storing any kind of hazardous debris, referencing the Will Rogers site and the existing Topanga site in her post.

“We have suggested numerous alternative sites within the burn scar to further prevent contamination, but it has now been authorized by the EPA, (the Federal Emergency Management Agency) and the governor’s office,” she said in a video posted Wednesday.

Park said she has asked the EPA to hold a town hall meeting for residents to ask questions about decision-making, safeguards and the staging process overall as it pertains to Will Rogers State Beach.

“The state has authorized the use of the parking lot at Will Rogers because it has enough space to safely stage household hazardous materials before transport, is flat, and is accessible to trucks used for transport,” the California State Parks’ statement said.

At a Malibu City Council special meeting Monday, representatives from FEMA and the EPA indicated that the singular site near Topanga would not be large enough to process the debris from the thousands of structures destroyed in the Palisades fire. The new site at Will Rogers State Beach will add to the at least 20 acres of staging space authorities say is needed to complete the work.

“This necessary action helps speed up debris removal on properties destroyed by the wildfire and will enable residents to rebuild their homes faster,” the California State Parks’ statement said.