The South Coast Air Quality Management District said it received more than 900 complaints last week alone about the foul stench coming from the burned facility. As of Monday, the agency has issued seven violations to Lineage for "discharging such quantities of air contaminants to cause injury, detriment, nuisance or annoyance."
AQMD also sent the company a demand letter requiring it to submit an improved odor mitigation plan by Monday. Regulators say the plan must include steps to reduce downwind smells as rotting food is loaded into trucks.
The fire, which broke out on June 17, has left some in Boyle Heights dealing with nauseating odors ever since.
L.A. City Councilmember Ysabel Jurado met with Lineage representatives Monday afternoon. Her office said the meeting would focus on how the company plans to respond to the violations and reduce both the stench and pest issues stemming from the warehouse.
"Today's meeting confirmed that work is happening, but it did not answer the questions residents have been asking for weeks," Jurado said in a statement following the meeting. "The community needs to know what protections are being added, when conditions will improve, how Lineage will respond to AQMD, and how success will be measured."
The statement said Lineage reported removing 1,329 tons of food waste through 589 truckloads and approximately 1,630 tons of total waste, and the company also reported using physical barriers, disinfectants, deodorizers and additional carbon-filter air scrubbers.
Jurado's office said Lineage provided a pest-control inspection that identified the warehouse as the primary source of the fly infestation affecting the surrounding area.
"The materials provided on Monday remain an interim response. Lineage has not yet publicly explained how it will respond to each AQMD notice, what corrective actions will be required, when they will be completed, or whether its odor-control measures are working," the statement added.
Lineage did not respond to inquiries from 7 On Your Side Investigates. AQMD says it expects the company to meet its deadline.