Residents now have until Dec. 28 to review the 570-page document detailing the potential impacts of the proposed expansion of the Simi Valley Landfill.

Due to a request by the Simi Valley City Council, the county agreed to extend the public comment period on the draft environmental impact report (EIR), which analyzes the project’s effects on traffic, air quality, natural resources and aesthetics.

At the council’s Oct. 12 meeting, Mayor Pro Tem Barbra Williamson asked that the city send a letter to the county requesting that the review period be extended 45 days past the original Nov. 11 deadline.

She said more time is needed due to the sheer size of the document, which includes nearly 2,000 pages of attached appendices.

“It’s something that’s very, very difficult to get through and to do it in that short a time is just not feasible,” Williamson said. “It took the consultant nearly 18 months to get through it and now they want the general public to do it in 45 days? That’s not acceptable.”

The rest of council agreed, and this week the county granted the extension, City Manager Mike Sedell said.

The letter also asked that once the final EIR is ready to be reviewed by the County Board of Supervisors there be at least one meeting held in Simi, since it’s the “most affected city,” Williamson said.

“They need to do it at night so that people, when they are not working, can go to the meetings,” she added.

The county hasn’t yet given the city an answer to that request.

Waste Management’s proposed expansion would triple the size of the landfill to 887 acres, double the disposable trash intake to 6,000 tons per day and relocate G.I. Rubbish from its current facilities on W. Los Angeles Avenue to the landfill area.

The waste hauler also wants to improve existing facilities by adding a household hazardous waste collection center and a facility to transform methane gas into liquefied natural gas for truck fuel.

The public review period for the draft EIR will now close at 5 p.m. Mon., Dec. 28. Comments should be sent to Case Planner Becky Linder at Ventura County Resource Management Agency, Planning Division, 800 S. Victoria Ave., L#1740, Ventura, CA 93009-1740.

Comments can also be e-mailed to becky.linder@ventura.org.

A copy of the draft EIR is available at www.ventura.org/rma/ planning/ceqa/eir.html.

The City Council will review the draft EIR at 6:30 Mon., Nov. 9 in council chambers at City Hall, 2929 Tapo Canyon Road.