EDITORIAL DROPPING ACID LAUSD NOT ENSURING TRUST WITH TOXIC TRASH.

WE have alert teachers to thank for raising a cry when they spied workers dumping hydrochloric acid and other unpleasant chemicals in the regular waste bins at LAUSD District 1 offices the other day. Their quick thinking kept the hazardous materials from being transported to Sunshine Canyon Landfill near Granada Hills.

Hydrochloric acid is a highly corrosive compound that is very harmful to living tissue. It and other hazardous wastes are not permitted in the dump.

This toxic trip has been averted, but it raises a rather disturbing suspicion: Just how many times have toxic substances been dumped and not reported?

The response from school officials, who noted that the chemicals came from science labs, was ``it's not a regular occurrence,'' and must have been done by ``someone who didn't know.'' Translation: This sort of thing does happen -- though not regularly -- and there are workers who don't know not to toss jugs of hazardous waste into the regular trash bins.

That's just not acceptable for an institution entrusted with the care of the city's children. Here's hoping that the LAUSD uses this incident as a teachable moment for its ranks of workers.