Community Outreach Program: Chiquita Canyon Landfill Voluntary Remediation

Case Summary 

The Chiquita Canyon Landfill in California was experiencing a chemical reaction deep underground, prompting community complaints of odors eminating from the site.

In response, regulators required the Chiquita Canyon Landfill to implement a voluntary remediation program offering financial support to the surrounding impacted communities. Faced with this challenge, the company sought expertise from Kroll to aid in the implementation and community outreach required by the voluntary remediation program.

The Challenge

How to best provide relief payments to the impacted community

Between March 2024 and March 2025, residents could submit monthly verification of the ongoing need for relief by providing the required documentation to verify their residency within the affected area. Proof of residency documentation could include copies of bills, insurance policies or credit card statements, provided they contained the applicant’s name, the address of the affected property and a service/coverage period that included the current month. Applications for relief payments and subsequent monthly recertification were uploaded through Kroll’s Chiquita Canyon program website. To further alleviate community concern and support the company’s efforts, Chiquita Canyon also asked Kroll to provide in-person community support for the program.

Kroll’s Solution 

To expedite relief payments for the community, in May 2024, Kroll planned and staffed bilingual community events on Fridays and Saturdays. The events were hosted at key recognizable community gathering centers nearby. Kroll managed and staffed these events with a dedicated team capable of communicating in both English and Spanish. The centers regularly accommodated gatherings of several hundred people. The community events allowed residents to have their questions answered in person, and the Kroll team was present to streamline the submission process and assist attendees with filing applications and recertifications of the need for relief on-site.

The Impact 

Over the course of nearly a year, Kroll organized over a dozen in-person, two-day community events. Additionally, Kroll fielded more than 12,000 phone calls, received nearly 65,000 unique website visits and processed over 3,000 applications for reimbursement. The community events boosted community engagement and alleviated pressure on the company by providing dedicated resources to those impacted. Throughout the duration of the program, Kroll mailed over 13,500 relief checks to impacted residents for over $25 million in relief payments.