Ventura County prosecutors say two companies, and four individuals are the focus of a new indictment stemming from a 2014 toxic chemical explosion, and fire at a wastewater disposal facility outside of Santa Paula.
The indictment names the Santa Clara Waste Water Company, Green Compass Environmental Solutions, as well as four others. The Grand Jury indictment includes more than a half dozen charges ranging from handling hazardous waste causing unreasonable risk to submission of false statements. The indictment process by passes a preliminary hearing, and sets the stage for a trial.
The charges supersede a complaint field last December. Investigators with the DA’s office say they found more than 5,000 gallons of hazardous wastes which had not been reported to the county as required by law.
More than three dozen people were sickened by chemicals released during the explosion, and fire.