When it comes to hazardous waste, California has some of the strictest rules in the country. Specifically, the state has set lower bar than most for what exactly it considers hazardous, triggering greater precautions around in-state disposal. But that doesn’t mean California is always disposing of toxic materials more carefully than its neighbors. That’s because nearly half of the the Golden State’s hazardous waste is disposed of across state lines, much of it is contaminated soil.
CalMatters investigative reporter Robert Lewis joins Terra Verde host and Earth Island Journal managing editor Zoe Loftus-Farren to discuss his long-term investigation into California’s hazardous waste rules, how they are impacting communities both inside and outside state, and where we might go from here.