City May Charge to Treat Septic Waste

A proposal to charge haulers for the septic-tank waste they dump into the city’s sewer system is gaining momentum.

On Monday, the City Council’s Environmental Quality and Waste Management Committee held a public hearing on a city controller proposal to charge haulers for the treatment of the waste they put into the system.

On Friday, the city Board of Public Works instructed the Bureau of Sanitation to draft an ordinance that would put this idea into effect, and to propose fees to be paid by haulers, by the end of March.

“I’m in favor of the city recouping its costs for this service,” said Councilman Marvin Braude, who heads the environmental committee, after the meeting. He said the people who generate the costs should pay.

On Feb. 14, Controller Rick Tuttle informed the mayor and the City Council that the city’s practice of accepting waste from septic-tank users in the San Fernando Valley, Malibu, La Crescenta and La Canada Flintridge has cost the city about $1.8 million a year. He recommended immediate action to recoup the costs.

At Monday’s hearing, sanitation officials said that Los Angeles is one of only a few cities that does not charge for the treatment of septic-tank waste.

Braude asked the officials--Michael Miller, an assistant director of the sanitation bureau, and Vincent Varsh, manager of the bureau’s industrial-waste management division--to report on issues surrounding the proposed ordinance to the council in 10 days.