Westmorland Chemical Waste Facility

A major chemical waste disposal site, that accepts contaminated soils, filter cake, and other non-fluid toxic industrial wastes. The material is placed in plastic-lined pits, or "cells," and covered with soil. When it is filled, a cell is visible as a raised rectangular mound. It is one of 11 landfills in North America operated by the hazardous waste handling company Safety-Kleen, which bought several landfills recently from Laidlaw, including this one. Westmorland is one of four similar facilities in the southern half of California (the others are Kettleman Hills, McKittrick, and Buttonwillow, all of which are in the southern San Juaquin Valley).