About 10 tons of electronic waste, including potentially hazardous cathode ray tubes from computer monitors and other dangerous materials, was found dumped Wednesday morning on a vacant lot in Long Beach, officials said.
Jim Kuhl, an official with the city's waste management department, said the refuse apparently was dumped during the night at 16th Street and Long Beach Boulevard because laws prohibit the disposal of the tubes, which contain lead, in commercial landfills.
He said hazardous-materials experts were brought in to deal with the problem.
"It's probably a $15,000 to $20,000 cleanup," he said.
The state Department of Health Services banned the dumping of tubes from computer monitors and television sets two years ago. Other electronics contain such toxic elements as cadmium, barium and mercury.
The state Department of Toxic Substances announced in February that cell phones, stereos and computer hard drives will be banned from landfills starting in 2006.
