Puente Hills Landfill
 From the air in 2005
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Puente Hills Landfill and Hacienda Heights
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Puente Hills Landfill is the largest landfill in the United States, rising 500 feet (150 meters) high and covering 700 acres (2.8 km2). Puente Hills accepted four million tons of waste in 2005. As of October 31, 2013, its operating permit has been terminated and it no longer accepts new refuse.
The landfill is located in the Puente Hills, in southeastern Los Angeles County near Whittier, California and is owned and operated by the Sanitation Districts of Los Angeles County. The closest urban communities are unincorporated Hacienda Heights to the east, and unincorporated Avocado Heights and the City of Industry to the north.
30,000 cubic feet per minute of landfill gas created by the landfill is funneled to the Puente Hills Gas-to-Energy Facility, which generates more than 40 megawatts of electricity.
The landfill has gained some popular attention. Penn and Teller visited the landfill in an episode of their television program Bullshit! to assess the validity of recycling, and the television documentary series MegaStructures focused on the landfill in the episode "Garbage Mountain".
Edward Humes discusses the landfill extensively as a core part of his book Garbology: Our Dirty Love Affair with Trash.
The Puente Hills Landfill offers tours. The Puente Hills Landfill Native Habitat Preservation Authority directs the acquisition, restoration, and management of open space in the Puente Hills for preservation of the land to protect the biological diversity and provide opportunities for outdoor education and low-impact recreation.
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Wikipedia