Regulators demand Lineage take more steps to reduce odors from Boyle Heights warehouse
Southern California air quality regulators ordered Lineage to reduce odors from its Boyle Heights warehouse after receiving 900 complaints this week.
After issuing the company six notices of violation, the South Coast Air Quality Management District listed more than two dozen additional measures the company must implement.
"While Lineage has implemented some odor-reducing measures, the company has not yet incorporated several key actions requested by South Coast AQMD," regulators wrote in a statement. "South Coast AQMD has identified additional measures that are needed to minimize odor impacts to the community."
The cold-storage facility has been at the center of the neighborhood's concerns after a weeklong fire burned alongside 85 million pounds of food. Once the flames were extinguished, the focus shifted to the rotting waste that emitted garbage-like odors and attracted rodents and pests into the surrounding neighborhoods.
Among the more than two dozen demands, Lineage must add odor neutralizers to its dump trucks, create a double layer of odor prevention around the spoiled food and implement daily cleaning plans for loading areas and streets where trucks may drive through.
The company must also install signs with South Coast AQMD's complaint line around the warehouse.
Lineage has until Tuesday, July 21, to respond to regulators with how they plan to implement the measures.
Crews began transporting the rotting food on June 28, a day before Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass set a 45-day timeline to remove all of the biohazardous waste. To do so, Lineage would need to transport roughly 1,888,889 pounds per day.
As of July 15, Lineage has removed 1,622,000 pounds, according to its cleanup tracker.
Since the fire in June, Lineage has donated roughly $2.5 million worth of air purifiers, housing vouchers, masks, meals and other cash assistance to surrounding residents.
However, the ongoing odors have frustrated residents who displayed their anger, which was apparent during a town hall last week. After storming into the meeting with megaphones and signs, irate residents demanded more action from Lineage and city leaders.
"I understand the uncertainty, the frustration and the disruption that it's caused," Lineage COO Jeff Rivera said as the crowd jeered at him. "I am sorry. I am sorry for the disruption that this has caused. I'm here tonight because I know that there are [questions] you want answered. I'm working on answering those questions directly."
