FALLBROOK: Concerns about environment, water heard at landfill meeting

Animal habitats, sacred American Indian land and whether a liner would protect water supplies against toxins were among the issues discussed at a public hearing on the proposed Gregory Canyon landfill in Fallbrook on Wednesday.

The meeting at the Fallbrook Library was held to inform the public about the status of the project, which has been in the works for 17 years, and to take public comments relating to the county Department of Environmental Health's upcoming decision about whether a permit should be granted to Gregory Canyon Ltd. to operate the landfill.

The landfill is proposed for 308 acres in an undeveloped, 1,770-acre parcel near Pala. The site crosses the San Luis Rey River, and is south of Highway 76 and about three miles east of Interstate 15.

Although proponents say it is needed to meet the needs of North County, which has no landfill, opponents object to its environmental effects and question its need.

Department of Environmental Health Director Jack Miller, who attended the meeting, has until April 1 to decide whether to grant the permit. If approved, the application will be sent to the state Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery for review, but several other state and federal agencies must approve the project before it is built.

Jim Simmons, managing partner for Gregory Canyon Ltd., said the landfill is needed in North County and would reduce air pollution by eliminating the need to haul trash out of town.

Of the more than 200 people at the meeting, most appeared to be against the landfill. More than 40 people spoke, including Pala Band of Mission Indians Chairman Robert Smith.

"If built, this dump would desecrate Gregory Mountain and other areas considered sacred by the Luiseno people, forever threaten water sources that supply tens of thousands of San Diego County residents, degrade air quality, and industrialize a rural area that provides habitat for a number of endangered and other special species," Smith said.

County Supervisor Pam Slater-Price also spoke against the landfill.

"Gregory Canyon must remain pristine," Slater-Price said. "The water and the river must remain protected."

Del Mar Mayor Don Mosier and Oceanside Mayor Jim Wood also wrote letters opposing the landfill.

Although several speakers opposing the project said all landfill liners have failed, Gregory Canyon Ltd. consultant Richard Felago said the 8-foot-thick, multilayered liner at this landfill would hold.

"The engineering fact is that any release from this landfill with this liner design is virtually impossible," Felago said, adding that a $100 million insurance policy would be taken out against any environmental damage.

Sierra Club attorney Pamela Epstein said the insurance policy would be no replacement for the loss of resources, since "money cannot be drunk."

Matt Simmons, the son of Jim Simmons, said that the landfill actually will preserve land because about 1,300 acres will be left untouched, and that another landowner might develop the property.

Larry Purcell of the San Diego County Water Authority said the facility is concerned that blasting, chemical reactions and traffic could damage aqueduct pipelines, which he said should be moved if the landfill is built.

Although the majority of public speakers opposed the landfill, Escondido resident Dave Shibley said it was needed.

"If we create waste here, we have a moral obligation to take care of it," he said.

Fallbrook resident James Orcutt also supported the landfill.

"We need a local landfill," he said. "I'm sorry."

Leroy Miranda, vice chairman of the Pala Band of Mission Indians, invited people to come to the site to see what was at stake.

"There's a North County eagle there," he said. "How many North County eagles are around here? Hardly any. The Pala eagle is ours, and that's sacred. You don't destroy and mess around with things like that."

Call staff writer Gary Warth at 760-740-5410.