Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.
'This Is Our Flint, Michigan.' Latest On The Cleanup Of Exide's Public Health Disaster

At a public hearing Thursday night in Boyle Heights, the status of a major environmental public health disaster was the only item on the agenda.
The hearing came three years after an Exide battery plant in Vernon shut down down afer contaminating soil on thousands of nearby properties. It's a story we've been covering at KPCC for years, and it was a frequent topic for LAistunder previous ownership.
Priska Neely was at the hearing and reported live on Twitter:
A state Assembly committee is holding a public hearing in Boyle Heights tonight on efforts to clean up lead-tainted soil in southeast LA County. Three years after the Exide plant closed, thousands of residents are still waiting on clean up @KPCC pic.twitter.com/65Jr2QvMIl
— Priska Neely (@priskaneely) August 9, 2018
. @KPCC has followed the impact of contamination from former Exide battery recycling plant for years. Here’s a great one from @1eaguilera https://t.co/SnTW7l5O2a
— Priska Neely (@priskaneely) August 9, 2018
Full house at this hearing on Exide cleanup.
— Priska Neely (@priskaneely) August 10, 2018
Speaker @Rendon63rd is making opening statements: “It’s sad that we’ve been at this so long.” @KPCC pic.twitter.com/XrKV7EbBF6
Assemblymember @wendycarrillo says if the community looked different “I can almost guarantee” this would have been cleaned up faster.
— Priska Neely (@priskaneely) August 10, 2018
Supervisor @HildaSolis: “This is our Flint, Michigan. There is no doubt about it.”
— Priska Neely (@priskaneely) August 10, 2018
Mohsen Nazemi, with the Department of Toxic Substance Control, says 380 parcels have been cleaned. And there are 13 crews in the field
— Priska Neely (@priskaneely) August 10, 2018
Re: parkway cleanup (contaminated sidewalk strips), Nazemi says DTSC plans to form a sampling and analysis plan this fall and begin sampling work in January @KPCC
— Priska Neely (@priskaneely) August 10, 2018
Matt Rodriguez, of DTSC, says the goal is to have no more breaks in testing and cleanup work. Says he will ask about the contract everyday until it’s signed.
— Priska Neely (@priskaneely) August 10, 2018
Barbara Ferrer of @lapublichealth says to the audience of 100+:
— Priska Neely (@priskaneely) August 10, 2018
“I know you’re tired of our meetings ... I want to appreciate that you’re still here” pic.twitter.com/KvLQqECEt3
Dr. Cyrus Rangan, bureau of toxicology, offers some terrifying insight on how lead spreads and how hard it is to detect hotspots:
— Priska Neely (@priskaneely) August 10, 2018
“Everyone is exposed to all of the lead”
After nearly three hours of panel discussion, public comment has finally started at this Exide hearing. The audience has certainly gotten smaller pic.twitter.com/VMYRN1Im8I
— Priska Neely (@priskaneely) August 10, 2018
“My body is broken and damaged beyond repair.”
— Priska Neely (@priskaneely) August 10, 2018
- Terry Cano who has been fighting for years and was featured in this 2015 @kpcc story https://t.co/qk130JxgXA pic.twitter.com/gGsF3YLLZa
Chart showing the number of @SEIU members and families impacted by Exide - 41,000+ pic.twitter.com/3TWCuZmyQd
— Priska Neely (@priskaneely) August 10, 2018
After a nearly 4 hour hearing, the remaining attendees sang happy birthday to Assemblymember @wendycarrillo pic.twitter.com/KUz4Xs0BaA
— Priska Neely (@priskaneely) August 10, 2018
News happens every day. Here at LAist, our goal is to cover the stories that matter to you and the community you live in. Now that we're part of KPCC, those stories (including this one you're on right now!) are made possible by generous people like you. Independent, local journalism isn't cheap, but with your support we can keep delivering it. Donate now.
As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.
Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.
We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.
No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.
Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.
Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.

-
With less to prove than LA, the city is becoming a center of impressive culinary creativity.
-
Nearly 470 sections of guardrailing were stolen in the last fiscal year in L.A. and Ventura counties.
-
With California voters facing a decision on redistricting this November, Surf City is poised to join the brewing battle over Congressional voting districts.
-
The drug dealer, the last of five defendants to plead guilty to federal charges linked to the 'Friends' actor’s death, will face a maximum sentence of 65 years in prison.
-
The weather’s been a little different lately, with humidity, isolated rain and wind gusts throughout much of Southern California. What’s causing the late-summer bout of gray?
-
Hexavalent chromium is the same carcinogen Erin Brockovich warned about in the 1990s, but researchers say more study is needed on the potential health effects of nanoparticles detected earlier this year. Experts will answer questions at a webinar this evening.