Department of Water Resources
A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment
August 25, 2008
4. Water Quality –
A toxic peek beneath S.J. County
Analysis of state's detailed database reveals 250 investigations into potential hot spots
By
Oil drums leaking. Pesticides seeping. Heavy metals draining into our waterways.
Per capita,
While some of these cases are decades old and were resolved long ago, more than two dozen sites still are being cleaned up - and it can take many years.
Such are the findings of a Record analysis of a state database detailing 250 such investigations in the county and nearly 9,000 statewide. The database is available to anyone who wonders what dangers might hide in the soil or groundwater of his or her neighborhood.
Not as well-known is the sheer quantity of smaller-scale investigations launched by the state Department of Toxic Substances Control, the agency charged with coordinating cleanup of sites that aren't deemed dangerous enough for federal enforcement.
Investigations have been launched practically anywhere you look in the county, from rural farmland in the Delta to the heart of downtown
To the south, officials investigated a World War II-era prisoner of war camp near Vernalis, worried that the soil might be polluted with sewage, paint, hospital waste, oil and even pesticides that were used to treat prisoners' head lice.
In
In the far eastern portion of the city, you might stumble on the former Stockton Wrecking Yard, which closed more than a decade ago but left a toxic legacy in the form of lead in the soil.
A voluntary cleanup agreement has been reached with the property owners, and heavy machinery parked there indicates something is happening.
The lot is bordered on three sides by homes. Road worker Jose Larios, 48, lives next door; his family's minivan and a chain-link fence is all that separates them from their toxic neighbor.
"When I bought the house four years ago, they didn't tell me," he said, smiling and shaking his head. "I would have asked a few more questions before buying if I'd known."
Of course, guessing whether the old Stockton Wrecking Yard or any of these sites could jeopardize your health is problematic.
A good number of the state's investigations on record were routine inspections, such as when schools are proposed for construction on farmland where pesticides were once used. In most of these cases, inspectors found nothing hazardous.
Some of the other investigations on record are just plain old. They were referred to other agencies a decade or longer ago, with the ultimate outcome unclear.
Still other cases are listed as needing further evaluation years after they were first documented.
Shortcomings notwithstanding, the database can teach us about toxic trends in our own communities, as well as generate some broad regional comparisons.
Neighbors Stanislaus,
Sparsely populated
Likely factors for our higher number of investigations are the military defense facilities in Lathrop and Tracy, as well as Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory lands, the former Navy facilities at Rough and
She said the county has aggressively pursued hazardous waste cleanups, also helping to explain the higher number of cases here.
"Probably it's a good thing that they're all on this list," Cotulla said. "That shows that we know about them and that they have been eliminated."
Nan Ballot, a local Sierra Club leader, was not surprised when she heard
"I'm aware of it," she said. "You just have to wonder how much of our health problems, not just human but the health of the Delta, too, are related to it."#
http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080824/A_NEWS/808240322
No comments:
Post a Comment