Recycling: Too Dangerous for O.C.

Cities, locals oppose recycling centers:

In Huntington Beach, plans for a recycling center at a Ralphs grocery store on Brookhurst Street and Adams Avenue have drawn strong opposition from city officials and residents, who say it would be unsightly, attract transients and generate noise.

Opponents say they already recycle through curbside trash programs and do not want a recycling center in their neighborhoods.

"Having a steel outhouse in the front with cans and bottle is not appealing," said Bruce Cowgill, who owns the Huntington Beach shopping center where the Ralphs is located.

The proposed center would be behind the supermarket near the 253-home Huntington Bay Homeowner Association neighborhood. Residents said an unlocked gate connects the two areas.

"We just feel that we are putting ourselves in harm’s way," resident Bonnie Meakin said about the gate. "It is going to make the mother with babies and little old ladies nervous about walking through the gate."

Vazquez said it is becoming increasingly difficult to set up outdoor recycling centers in Fullerton, Irvine, Orange and San Juan Capistrano. City permits that used to take three or four months are now taking up to two years.

"This is recycling. This is not a nuclear power plant," he said.

This just really disgusts me. Sometimes it seems that all people want is a comfortable padded cell in which to live.

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