Hazardous Waste

The state attorney general and three county prosecutors sued the auto-parts chain AutoZone on Wednesday, accusing it of illegally dumping hazardous waste at many of the company's 410 California stores. Hazardous materials were illegally dumped in storm drains and used oil and filters were improperly stored or removed, according to the $12-million lawsuit filed by the attorney general's office and prosecutors in Monterey, San Bernardino and San Joaquin counties.

"Fear FACTOR," the NBC gross-out reality show that has conveniently created a secondary market for food-grade maggots and unappetizing organ meats, recently announced a new twist. This summer, the show will shoot 22 "home invasion" stunts, in which producers will pop in on residents of such destinations as L.A., New York and Dubuque, Iowa, so that they might have the chance to munch tarantulas in the comfort of their own living rooms.

A Downey fire captain was among 10 people charged Thursday after an Orange County sting of individuals who allegedly offered cut-rate prices for illegally transporting hazardous waste. Edward L. Haupt, 44, of Placentia was charged with three misdemeanor counts of transporting toxic materials, officials said. He and nine men from Orange and Los Angeles counties were snared in a three-day sting in March, said an investigator from the California Department of Toxic Substance Control.

The owner and production manager of a Santa Ana motorcycle parts manufacturing company have been charged with illegally dumping hazardous waste into a sewer line. Donald R. Markland, 67, owner of Markland Manufacturing Inc., and production manager Keith E. Reineke, 54, allegedly released materials from the company's treatment plant -- including nickel, copper, lead and arsenic -- that ended up in an Orange County Sanitation District processing facility.

The $7-billion cleanup of the former Rocky Flats nuclear weapons plant reached a milestone Tuesday when the last shipment of high-level radioactive waste rumbled off toward a dumpsite in New Mexico. "The nearby communities definitely can feel safer now because this was the last of the heavy stuff," said Ken Korkia, director of the Rocky Flats Citizens Advisory board.

Spent nuclear fuel stored at commercial reactors across the nation may be vulnerable to terrorist attacks that would set off fires and disperse radiation to surrounding areas, nuclear experts warned Wednesday. A report by the National Academy of Sciences recommended that all the nation's 103 commercial reactors be examined by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and that measures be taken to reduce the potential for fires if the plants were attacked. Louis J.

Department of Energy officials proposed Wednesday to move an enormous pile of radioactive waste off the banks of the Colorado River in southern Utah -- to the great relief of politicians, environmentalists and Southern California water officials. The 12 million tons of residue from an abandoned uranium mill sits in a floodplain of the Colorado, which provides drinking water to an estimated 25 million people downstream in Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Phoenix and other cities throughout the Southwest.

Before the Panasonic SD Video Camera was born, designers planned for its death. When the $400 camera wears out and can no longer record video, play music or take photos, Panasonic engineers want it to do one final thing: be easy to get rid of. So it has no lead, no mercury and no brominated flame retardants -- all hazardous substances that make consumer electronics such as personal computers, digital cameras and televisions dangerous to bury in landfills and difficult to recycle.

A fire at a hazardous waste incineration plant forced hundreds of El Dorado residents to evacuate, officials said. No injuries were reported and officials were monitoring air quality as thick smoke rose from the plant. Residents reported hearing a series of explosions from the facility, which disposes of waste from industries and government operations around the country.

Los Angeles port commission President Nick Tonsich recused himself Wednesday from the decision to hire a company represented by his law firm for a $300,000 hazardous waste project. Commissioners voted 3 to 1 to hire Advanced Cleanup Technologies Inc. and three other firms for port projects totaling $2 million. Following instructions from the city attorney's office, Tonsich was not present at the discussion.