"The Kings County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday upheld an earlier decision to allow Chemical Waste Management to expand its 1,600-acre facility near Kettleman City in the San Joaquin Valley.

The proposal still needs state and federal approval.

Community members in the largely Spanish-speaking town about three hours north of Los Angeles urged the board to reject the expansion after discovering an alarming increase in birth defects and infant deaths."

The Associated Press had the story December 24, 2009. [2]