Mass Tort Suit Filed Over LA-area Landfill

Toxic conditions at California’s Chiquita Canyon Landfill are targeted in a mass tort lawsuit filed May 29 in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.
According to the plaintiffs lead attorney, Jackie Kruger, the Waste Connections, Inc. landfill has “created a toxic hazard for the community.”
Kruger told OSHA Today in an email that the plaintiffs group includes at least 35 individuals who are not residents near the landfill, but are only nearby employees, working for various Amazon affiliated warehouses, creative studios and the Los Angeles County Fire Dept.
“The toxic fumes emanating from Chiquita Canyon landfill have put employers at risk of liability for workers that are being exposed on the job,” she said.
The suit seeks unspecified compensatory and general damages.
An email Wednesday to Waste Connections, Inc. from OSHA Today seeking comment was not immediately answered.
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The New York City Department of Buildings has kicked off its “Summer of Safety,” highlighting that as of this month, 392,038 construction workers have received an active Site Safety Training card, showing they’ve completed at least 40 hours of safety training, in a Monday post on X.
That comes as building construction fatalities in New York City declined by 36% in 2023, with seven workers losing their lives, a nine-year low, according to an annual report by the agency.
However, the agency reported a 25% increase in the number of injuries reported to it on building construction sites in 2023.
The agency conducted a record of more than 370,000 field inspections of construction sites across the city in 2023.
“Contractors and safety supervisors must take steps to drastically reduce the risk of worker falls by adhering to DOB and OSHA safety regulations for guardrails, controlled access zones near leading edges, and enforce the use of appropriate fall arrest systems and harnesses,” the Department of Buildings stated.
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OSHA is seeking comments and other information from stakeholders in preparation for July’s session of the United Nations Sub-Committee of Experts on the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals.
It will hold a virtual meeting beginning at 1 p.m. ET on June 11. It said specific information for the meeting will be posted when available on the OSHA website.
OSHA recently finalized a rule that syncs its standard on hazard communication with the seventh revision of the global classification.
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