All News Releases By Date

 

EPA ORDERS COMPANIES, COUNTY TO RESOLVE LANDFILL PROBLEMS

Release Date: 4/27/1999
Contact Information: Lois Grunwald, U.S. EPA, (415) 744-1588

     SAN FRANCISCO -- To reduce the pollution of Las Vegas Wash and potentially Lake Mead, the Environmental Protection Agency today cited companies responsible for Sunrise Mountain Landfill and the Clark County Public Works Department for violations of federal law and ordered them to take immediate steps to repair problems with the landfill.

      "We believe this action is the surest way to guarantee that necessary repairs and improvements are made quickly to Sunrise Landfill to help protect the Las Vegas Wash and Lake Mead," said Laura Yoshii, the EPA's deputy regional administrator.  "The erosion and trash washout that occurred during last year's floods is entirely preventable."

     The EPA cited landfill operator Republic DUMPCo and affiliated companies, and the Clark County Public Works Department for violations of the federal Clean Water Act and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. The EPA is ordering the implementation of a stormwater control plan; interim repair of the existing drainage system; an upgrade of the landfill cap to federal standards; methane and groundwater monitoring and control, and a plan for maintenance and monitoring of the site. Failure to comply with the orders carries penalties of up to $32,500 per day the landfill is in violation.

     "We appreciate the work that the Nevada Department of Environmental Protection has done to try and solve the difficult environmental problems at Sunrise and we welcome the state's continued involvement to bring the landfill into compliance," added Yoshii.

     Sunrise Mountain Landfill, a closed municipal landfill about three miles east of Las Vegas, contains about 25 million tons of waste. The landfill stopped receiving waste in the fall of 1993. Las Vegas Wash, which discharges into Lake Mead, is about two miles downhill from the landfill.
                           
     Last September, a series of storms washed out major portions of the landfill and sent solid waste and other pollutants into Las Vegas Wash. An EPA inspection of the landfill in November 1998 revealed significant environmental problems with the landfill.