The controversila Chef Menteur landfill has become a major issue during the recovery process. The state says it's safe. But community members aren't buying it. This landfill stink is back on has reached the nation's capitol. A White House mediator has been sent down to bring both sides together.

Members of the Vietnamese community members rallied to have the landfill shut down. They say waste going into the facility isn't being disposed of properly.

"We want it shut down because the way it's being dumped right now, it's going straight into groundwater and that goes straight into the canal and cuts straight through the community," said community organizer Mai Dang. She also says the Chef landfill isn't their only concern. Dang says there are 23 known illegal dump sites and 14 automobile junk yards along Almonaster Drive and New Orleans East. They want the state to clean them up as well.

The state says they are working to clean up illegal sites.

"Quite frankly what DEQ has done over the years is actually worked in conjunction with city police and put a lot of stings together and arrested some people. That's the route you go with illegal dumping," says Chuck Brown, Assistant Secretary of the Office of Environmental Service with the Department of Environmental Quality. He also counters the community's claims that the Chef landfill is unsafe.

"This facility couldn't be run better. Its much more protective of human health and environment than any other facility that you can name. So, we feel that it is vital and it is very critical to the recovery," said Brown

The dispute has made its way to the nation's capitol. A White House mediator and an EPA official have been dispatched to facilitate a meeting between both sides.

"We feel that the two parties should sit down and talk openly and have an open dialogue," said Piyachat Terrell, the Deputy Director for the White House Initiative on Asian American and Pacific Islanders Affairs.

Community members hope that open dialogue closes a dump that they believe could have lasting health concerns for them in the future.