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  Population & Trash - Ventura County 

Spend any afternoon watching the History Channel and you will quickly realize that we as humans used to carry our trash to the mouth of the cave, and later, edge of our villages and cities, then dump it.  Archeologists have been able to piece together our history based upon the kinds of trash (and the amount of trash) in any one location.

Here in Simi Valley however, we are ‘re-writing history’ in respect to how we handle our garbage and trash… we are simply dumping in our own backyard.   And because we (apparently) don’t have enough trash, we are importing trash from other cities and counties. 

Waste Management’s website says “The SVLRC provides approximately 60% of Ventura County's daily refuse disposal needs, and 75% of all tons accepted at the SVLRC originate in Ventura County.”   The landfill was opened in 1970 and Waste Management acquired it in 1983.   And the website also says, “For over 30 years, the SVLRC has been serving the needs of residents in Ventura County and the west San Fernando Valley.”

So, let's test this set of numbers out, from an average citizen's perspective:

Can someone explain to me where the Simi Valley Landfill is currently servicing 60% of Ventura County's population?

Time to get your handy dandy calculator out here... Accepting the fact there are 2,000 pounds to one ton and the EPA's 2006 figure that each person generates 2.55 pounds per day of trash - to make it easy (and hopefully we as humans are doing better by 'going green', let's use 2.5 pounds per day):

• Waste Management (currently permitted for 3,000 tons per day): 284,711 population X 2.5 lbs = 711,777.5 lbs or 356 tons per day

• Ventura Regional Sanitation District (currently permitted for 1,500 tons per day - manages Toland Landfill and the two transfer stations of Gold Coast and Del Norte): 466,612 X 2.5 = 1,166,530 lbs or 583 tons per day

Basic assumptions one can draw from this is that the county management waste system (VRSD) is doing a much better job that the private sector owned- and operated company (WM)... That we really have no need to increase the permitted amount of tons at all for the Simi Valley Landfill and should be asking Waste Management to take some lessons and pointers from VRSD, handling the waste management more efficiently and effectively... Or there is trash being hauled into our community that is NOT ours, nor our county's... One only has to sit by the 118 and watch the container trucks coming across the Santa Susanna Pass from Los Angeles and the San Fernando Valley to appreciate how valid some of these assumptions are... Or the EPA's report from 2006 is way off the charts.

Regardless of the opinions or assumptions one makes, these are YOUR dollars - taxpayer or consumer - as well as OUR trash we need to better manage and take care of! 

Again, can someone explain to me why we should approve of the application to double the daily tonnage at the Simi Valley Landfill?

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Update - June 5, 2008

More accurate population figures were obtained from the California Department of Finance

Citation: Numbers were extrapolated from data by the State of California, Department of Finance, January 2008 Cities and Counties Ranked by Size, Numeric, and Percent Change. Sacramento, California, May 2008 - their full spreadsheet is located HERE.

Keeping it real (always),
Linda

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