Palisades Fire debris site at Will Rogers State Beach parking lot draws scrutiny

MALIBU, Calif. (KABC) -- A temporary processing site for hazardous waste from the Palisades Fire is drawing criticism from residents.

Much of the Palisades recovery will have to come after cleanup. With thousands of burned-out buildings littered across the landscape, hazardous materials abound.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has about 1,200 workers split between the Palisades and Eaton fire zones. The agency's job is to remove hazardous waste - batteries, propane tanks, paints and pesticides - so the Army Corps of Engineers can then clear out the debris and ash.

For the EPA to do its job, a processing area is needed - one the agency intends to set up at the Will Rogers State Beach parking lot. But the thought of placing hazardous waste so close to the water is not sitting well with residents or with Los Angeles City Councilmember Traci Park.

"This obviously poses major concerns about potential impacts on our coastal environments," Park said.

Park wants the processing site set up in an area that's already been burned, but the EPA says that won't work because they need a large, flat site with easy access to major roads.

Concerns about new contamination along the coast, the agency says, are unfounded.

"This is material that will be doubled, sometimes tripled bagged or containerized," said Christina Progess of the EPA. "We will be doing air monitoring as well throughout the entire duration of the staging area being stood up, and we'll also sample when we're done."

The EPA hopes to start construction of the processing site as soon as possible.

At Los Angeles City Hall Thursday, the first meeting of the new Ad Hoc Committee on LA Recovery was held. The committee's goal is to fast-track relief and rebuilding.