The San Bernardino and Riverside county district attorneys filed a lawsuit against Walmart with the California Attorney General and 10 other California district attorney offices in Alameda Superior Court Dec. 20.
The suit alleges Walmart has illegally disposed of its hazardous waste, medical waste and customer records – which includes personal information, in California landfills ill-equipped to handle them since 2015.
The lawsuit is unjustified, and demands a level of compliance that goes beyond what is required by law, according to Walmart spokesperson Randy Hargrove.
Waste disposal
Walmart operates, owns, licenses and leases more than 300 stores across California, according to the complaint, and 31 across San Bernardino and Riverside counties, according to their website.
Every state inspection of a Walmart store’s trash compactor since 2015 found hazardous waste, medical waste or personal customer information, the complaint alleges.
A February, 2016, Walmart internal study concluded the chain disposed of 28 pounds of potentially hazardous waste items within each trash disposal, the complaint claims.
This would result in 159,600 pounds of hazardous waste annually across California, the suit claims.
In a list of 60 failed inspections across the state, the suit claims inappropriate waste was found six times during inspections in San Bernardino and Riverside counties.
Causes of action
In its first cause of action, the suit alleges Walmart violated Health & Safety Code Section 25203 by unlawfully disposing of hazardous waste.
In its second cause, the suit alleges Walmart violated Health & Safety Code Section 25189 by allowing the illegally disposed hazardous waste to remain at the incorrect location without filing a report or removing the waste.
The suit’s third cause says Walmart violated the Hazardous Waste Control Law by not determining hazardous waste at its locations
Additional claims say Walmart violated additional laws by not using a licensed hazardous waste transporter, by transporting the hazardous waste to unauthorized locations, by not properly tracking the waste through required manifests, by not labeling hazardous waste, by disposing medical waste without treating it, by not using an authorized medical waste hauler and by violating the Unfair Competition Law, which prohibits unlawful acts.
The suit prays for the court to permanently enjoin Walmart from violating the law as alleged, and for civil penalties.
Walmart’s response
Walmart’s response from Hargrove claimed the suit was filed in the hope that Walmart would enter into a substantial financial settlement.
The company followed a 2010 settlement regarding hazardous waste in good faith, and under collaboration with the attorney general and individual district attorneys, Hargrove wrote.
Waste audits performed by the California Attorney General’s office found 0.4% of items of potential concern, compared to 3% average across California, Hargrove wrote.
Parties
Michael Hestrin, Riverside County District Attorney; Lauren Martineau, Riverside County Deputy District Attorney; Jason Anderson, San Bernardino County District Attorney; and David Tulcan, San Bernardino County Deputy District Attorney, are signed on to the case, along with 26 other attorneys from district attorney offices and the attorney general office.
Alameda Superior Court Case Number 21CV004367
Read the complaint here.
