Newby Island Sanitary and the Recyclery Rezoning | City of San José
Environmental Impact Report

One of the largest active landfills in the San Francisco Bay, Newby Island Sanitary Landfill (NISL) is located in the City of San José at the western terminus of Dixon Landing Road.  The approximately 300-acre area has been used as a landfill since the 1930’s.  The Recyclery, which is located adjacent to the landfill, processes source separated recyclables including paper, glass, plastics, metals, wood, green waste and yard trimmings, and mixed commercial recyclables.

In 2012, the City of San José rezoned NISL and the adjacent Recyclery to increase the maximum height of the landfill from 150 to 245 feet, which added approximately 15 million cubic yards of capacity to the landfill, and clarified the uses allowed at the site.  The project allowed the landfill operator to optimize the design of the project site, enabling the project site to continue to provide waste disposal and recycling solutions for the City of San José and surrounding municipalities. 

DJP&A prepared the EIR for project.  The analysis of project impacts was complex given the land uses, dynamic operations, and environmentally sensitive location near the Bay.  NISL is bounded by Coyote Creek, the San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge, South Coyote Slough, and the Santa Clara Valley Water District’s Reach 1A waterbird pond and salt marsh harvest mouse habitat restoration area.  The EIR analysis identified and required the implementation of an extensive Nuisance Species Abatement Plan (NSAP) to manage and control nuisance species who were predating sensitive species, impacting their population.  Other issues of concern by the local groups and residents addressed in the EIR included visual impacts, odor, and geology.