While cleanup efforts continued throughout most of the summer at the Lineage Logistics warehouse in Boyle Heights, South Coast AQMD conducted daily inspections at the facility and air quality monitoring in surrounding communities to verify compliance with an Order for Abatement issued to reduce odors from the facility.
The Order was approved by the South Coast AQMD Hearing Board on August 6 following thousands of odor complaints from the residents in surrounding communities reporting persistent rotten, sour, and garbage-like odors associated with cleanup activities at the cold storage facility, which contained over 88 million pounds of food products at the time of the fire.
The Order imposed over 90 conditions designed to mitigate odors, requiring the company to contain, reduce and eliminate odorous emissions during cleanup activities to remove food waste. Expanded community communications, including providing information in both English and Spanish, additional signage and fenceline air monitoring were also among the conditions imposed by the Order.
On August 29, Lineage Logistics notified the agency that it had completed removal of the remaining bulk food waste from Freezer 1. Food waste from Freezer 2 had already been removed prior to the issuance of the Order. On September 5, South Coast AQMD’s enforcement team confirmed that the company had completed remaining debris removal, power washing and disinfecting inside the freezer.
Following removal of the bulk food waste, odor complaints declined significantly, from over a hundred complaints per day in July to an average of fewer than five per day. Since July 12, South Coast AQMD has received more than 5,000 odor complaints and issued 39 Notices of Violation (NOVs) for public nuisance to Lineage Logistics, with the most recent NOV issued on August 28. The NOVs are moving through the enforcement process and can carry penalties of up to $75,000 per day, per violation, depending on various factors, including negligent or willful misconduct.
South Coast AQMD will continue to respond to complaints and to verify compliance with the Order until the agency confirms all odor mitigation efforts have been completed or are no longer required. The agency is also conducting air monitoring at Eastman Avenue Elementary and Robert Louis Stevenson Middle School, overseeing contractors’ air measurements and responding to public air quality complaints.
Since the incident began on June 17, South Coast AQMD has taken extensive measures to help protect public health through specialized air monitoring, public advisories, and community outreach and support to assist residents impacted by the warehouse fire and persistent odors.
For the latest developments and updates, visit aqmd.gov/palos.