PUBLIC HEARING CONTINUED TO A SPECIAL MEETING ON JANUARY 31, 2024 at 6:00 P.M. 

Materials Related to the Public Hearings for the John Smith Road Landfill Expansion:

October 25th, 2023:

JSRL Expansion (COUNTY PRESENTATION) 2023-10-25

JSRL Expansion (APPLICANT PRESENTATION) 2023-10-25

October 27th, 2023:

JSRL Expansion (COUNTY PRESENTATION) 2023-10-27

JSRL Expansion (APPLICANT PRESENTATION) 2023-10-27

JSRL October 2022 PFAS Results 2023-05-15

October 30th, 2023:

JSRL Expansion (COUNTY PRESENTATION) 2023-10-30

The Final Environmental Impact Report for the John Smith Road Landfill Expansion is now available for public review and includes all responses to comments provided to the County during the public review period of the Draft Environmental Impact Report, A Notice of Public Hearing was given on Friday, September 29, 2023 for the County of San Benito Planning Commission Special Meeting which is scheduled to occur on Wednesday, October 11, 2023 at 6:00pm at the San Benito County Board of Supervisors Chambers located at 481 Fourth Street in Hollister. The agenda packet for this meeting will be available soon and posted to the County calendar.

The Draft Environmental Impact Report (Draft EIR) for the John Smith Road Landfill Expansion was circulated for a public review and comment period beginning July 15, 2022 to September 6, 2022. Responses to all comments are being prepared and will be made available as part of the Final Environmental Impact Report.

Final EIR - View here

Draft EIR - View here

Draft EIR by sections - View here

Landfill Background  

The John Smith Road Landfill (JSRL) is owned by San Benito County and is operated by Waste Connections, a private waste company, as authorized by the Landfill Operating Agreement approved by the Board of Supervisors on December 21, 2010. A Second Amendment to the Landfill Operating Agreement was adopted on October 17, 2019. A Third Amendment was adopted on June 8, 2021. The County’s Integrated Waste Management Division manages compliance of the Landfill Operating Agreement. The landfill currently receives refuse from San Benito County and prior to March 30, 2022 the landfill received refuse from jurisdictions outside the County. The daily limit of refuse to the landfill is 1000 tons per day. Prior to March 30, 2022, approximately 80% of tons came from out of county and 20% of the tons coming from San Benito County. As of March 30, 2022, acceptance of Out of County waste was suspended per the Landfill Operating Agreement as the 15 years of In-County waste threshold was reached.

Landfill Expansion Project

Landfill Expansion Project Frequently Asked Questions  

Waste Connections, through the project applicant Waste Solutions of San Benito, LLC, is proposing an expansion of the landfill. The proposed project includes a 388.05-acre expansion of the existing 95.16-acre JSRL. This expansion would increase the landfill's disposal capacity, expand the total waste footprint, increase the maximum permitted elevation of the final landfill, and increase the maximum daily tonnage accepted at the JSRL. 

To accommodate these changes, several operational changes are also being proposed. These include expanding the landfill entrance area to accommodate additional daily vehicle arrivals and reduce vehicle queuing on John Smith Road, expanding areas for recycling and the County's Household Hazardous Waste program, establishing an area for the future installation of a gas-to-energy facility, and clean closing the current Class 1 area, owned by the City of Hollister and converting it to a disposal area for Class III waste. Additionally, the proposed project potentially would include the use of a portion of the San Benito County property located south of John Smith Road for habitat mitigation purposes. 

Landfill Environmental Impact Report and Outreach to Agencies and Public

The landfill expansion process will include public meetings to allow full transparency and opportunities for public feedback. In compliance with California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), the County Planning and Land Use Division is responsible for the preparation and public review of an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) that will be reviewed and approved by the San Benito County Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors. The Draft EIR is being prepared by Douglas Environmental. The County has hired Grassetti Environmental Consulting to perform an independent, third-party review of the EIR. 

The environmental issues to be addressed in the DEIR may include some or all of the following:

County Independent EIR Review of the John Smith Road Landfill Expansion

The County of San Benito Resource Management Agency (RMA) distributed a Request for Proposal, seeking firms capable of preparing and delivering California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) compliant environmental review documents. Grassetti Environmental Consulting was selected as the County's Independent EIR Review Consultant. The contract was approved by the Board of Supervisors on February 23, 2021. 

Notice of Preparation 

A Notice of Preparation (NOP) of the EIR was distributed for public review. This document provides further information regarding the proposed project and the potential environmental impacts. Two virtual public scoping meetings were held on 3.10.21 and 3.11.21 by Zoom to allow for public comment. The NOP written public comment period ended on 3.23.21. 

Notice of Availability of Draft Environmental Impact Report

Notice of Availability of Draft EIR

The Draft Environmental Impact Report (Draft EIR) for the John Smith Road Landfill Expansion was circulated for a public review and comment period beginning July 15, 2022 until September 6, 2022. Responses to all comments have been prepared and are available as part of the Final Environmental Impact Report.

The Draft Environmental Impact Report (Draft EIR) can be reviewed by each individual document and chapter below:

Draft EIR Cover Title

Table of Contents

1. Introduction 

2. Summary 

3. Project Description

4. Existing Setting

4.1 Land Use 

4.2 Traffic

4.3 Air Quality

4.4 GHG 

4.5 Noise

4.6 Biological Resources

4.7 Cultural 

4.8 Hydrology

4.9 Geology and Soils

 4.10 Hazards and Wildfires

4.11 Aesthetics

4.12 Public Services, Utilities and Energy

5 Cumulative and Growth Inducing Impacts

6 Alternatives

7 Preparers

Appendix A

Appendix B

Appendix C

Appendix D

CRF_Habitat_Assessment_Draft 2018-0823

California Tiger Salamander Habitat Assessment Draft 2018

JSRL Draft Bio Assessment 2018

JSRL Expansion Project Habitat Assessment 2020

JSRL Survey Memo 2020

JSRL Wetland Delineation - App. B - F

JSRL Wetland Delineation Report

San Joaquin Kit Fox Habitat Assessment Draft 2018

Noise and Vibration Study 2021

Traffic Study 2022