Los Angeles County supervisors once again approved a Chiquita Canyon landfill expansion in Val Verde at their weekly meeting Tuesday.

The Board of Supervisors unanimously approved the recommendation from county staff to deny appeals from three Santa Clarita organizations, giving final approval to the landfill expansion.

“Concern remains on both sides of this issue,” said Kathryn Barger, 5th District supervisor. “The county has recognized response from both the applicant and residents — we tried to strike a balance.”

Barger, whose district encompasses the Santa Clarita Valley, proposed a number of changes, including increased air and odor monitoring, in response to concern from local residents.

Supervisor Barger recommended 12 air quality reports each year at random locations at schools and businesses within a 5-mile radius of the landfill — the original agreement only required four per year.

Additionally, within one year, an independent consultant is set to be approved by the County Department of Public Health to conduct a community health assessment study.

Each of these efforts will receive considerable oversight by a newly-formed Community Advisory Committee, according to county officials.

“Reflecting the culmination of thousands of hours of community meetings, input and engagement, my amendments provide a balanced approach that protects air and water quality and addresses community health concerns,” said Barger. “This will be the last CUP for the Chiquita Canyon Landfill which allows for the continued — but limited — use of the landfill while it winds down its operations over the next few decades.”

The appeals to the Chiquita contract extension were filed in April from three local environmental groups citing concern of potential health risks associated with the landfill.

The Val Verde Civic Association, Citizens for Chiquita Canyon Landfill Compliance (C4CCLC), Santa Clarita and Organization for Planning and the Environment (SCOPE) announced separate appeals on April 24.

The county responded to the concerns cited in the appeals in a document, also recommending the denial of the appeals.

The project request includes an expansion of the existing waste footprint from 257 acres to 400 acres; increased maximum elevation from 1,430 feet to 1,573 feet and increased daily disposal limits from 6,000 tons per day of waste to 12,000 tons per day, according to the agenda item.

The extension would last up to 30 years or when the disposal limit of 60 million tons is reached — with a periodic review at 10 and 20 years from the date of approval.

Chiquita Canyon is currently operating under a ‘clean hands waiver’ after exceeding the capacity of an agreement reached in 1997 with Val Verde residents, said county officials.

The clean hands agreement was issued in 2016 by the executive director of the county planning commission, so Chiquita could operate while the landfill seeked approval of expansion.

Officials from Chiquita Canyon landfill were not immediately available Tuesday afternoon.