Trying to add a payment method? You can do this on the 
QuickTake:
Regulators say the Day Island Landfill under Pre’s Trail poses “low risk” based on decades-old reports, and so the site won’t be reexamined unless Lane County seeks a voluntary cleanup.
A previous version of this story incorrectly stated the unit of measurement for unspecified oil in the landfill. At least 1,400 gallons of oil came from J.H. Baxter & Co.
Lane County closed the Day Island Landfill in 1974, the same year Steve Prefontaine returned from Scandinavian races with a vision for bark-covered trails in Eugene. After his death a year later, the community built Pre’s Trail without the environmental oversight that today likely would have been required.
Now, about 2 feet of soil separates people who use the trail and the landfill. Beneath, an estimated 950,000 tons of waste lie buried, including thousands of gallons of “unspecified oil,” at least 1,400 gallons of which came from J.H. Baxter & Co. — the west Eugene site of which was recently designated as a Superfund site.
A 1992 report commissioned by the Department of Environmental Quality showed the landfill contains the highly toxic pentachlorophenol, the same chemical that helped trigger the J.H. Baxter facility’s Superfund designation. It is a chemical designed to resist decay, meaning it doesn’t break down easily.
Right: Satellite image of Pre’s Trail in Alton Baker Park, March 2025.
Officials say decades-old studies from the 1980s and 1990s show “low risk,” though those reviews were not conclusive and no final clearance letter has ever ruled out future action.
Agencies have not revisited the landfill since the early 2000s and say they have no plans to do so after Lookout Eugene-Springfield’s September investigation that sparked questions in the community about modern day monitoring.
“There have not been discussions or planning regarding the old Day Island Landfill since Sept. 7. DEQ would be glad to help Lane County take advantage of our voluntary cleanup program. I recommend that you connect with the county,” DEQ spokesperson Dylan Darling said.
Lane County has no plans to pursue that option.
“Given the results of earlier evaluations and the lack of compelling new evidence, there are no current plans to do further work on the site at this time,” spokesperson Devon Ashbridge said.
The Environmental Protection Agency, DEQ and Lane County have not fully answered Lookout’s questions about why decades-old reports are still being used as sufficient evidence, despite testing methodologies and science that have evolved over the last 30 years.
DEQ continues to cite those reports in response to Lookout’s questions, saying people are protected from contamination by the landfill’s two-foot cap — typically a cover of soil, vegetation and an impermeable liner. But the same assessments noted areas with less than a one-foot cap, with no liner documented.
Organizers with Beyond Toxics, the environmental justice group who advocated for Baxter’s Superfund designation, don’t know the scope of pollution and its implications, said Mason Leavitt, a GIS analyst and coordinator. At the least, they can listen, he said.
“Everyone’s perspective here is really valuable,” he said. “I would encourage residents to reach out to the cleanup program, send them an email, and let them know this is on your mind and that you would like to know that you’re safe and your kids are safe.”
