Civil Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
(1980)
Between 1956 and 1972 the Stringfellow Quarry Company operated a state
authorized hazardous waste disposal facility 8 km (5 miles) Northwest of Riverside,
California. Approximately 155 million liters (34 million gallons) of industrial wastes
from metal finishing, electroplating and Department of Transportation (DOT)
production industries were placed in unlined evaporation ponds. The wastes disposed
of in these ponds migrated into the underlying highly permeable soils into the
groundwater and resulted in a contaminated plume which extended some 3 km (2
miles) downstream.
The site was voluntarily closed in 1972. The California Regional Water
Quality Control Board declared the site a problem area. Between 1975 and 1980,
approximately 30 million liters (6.5 million gallons) of liquid wastes and DOT
contaminated materials were removed and a policy to contain the waste and minimize
further contaminant migration was adopted. The Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) led an additional clean-up effort in 1980 that resulted in an additional 45
million liters (10 million gallons) of contaminated water being removed from the site.
In 1983, the site was added to the National Priorities List as California's worst
environmental hazard. Since that time, 4 Records of Decision have been issued by the
EPA outlining required clean-up measures. Estimates of clean-up costs as high as
three-quarters of a billion dollars have been cited along with indications that the work
could last for decades.
Lessons Learned
The Stringfellow Acid Pits site was one of the landmark environmental failures that
came to light in the 1970s and led to the passing of the Comprehensive
Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act in 1980. As such, it
changed the attention given to environmental assessment prior to real estate
transactions and the assignment of responsibility for inappropriate disposal of
hazardous wastes. One interesting fact about this site is that it is one of the few cases
where a government has been found liable for contributing to an environmental
problem. In this case, the State of California was found at fault as a result of its
actions in selecting this particular site for disposal and subsequently controlling
activities there.
References
Engineering News Record (ENR) (1992). "EPA, PRP's Sign Pact to Clean
Stringfellow,”
ENR
, August 17, 229, 14.
New York Times (NYT) (1993). "Largest-ever Toxic-Waste Suit Opens in
California,”
NYT
, February 5, 142.
