The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced today that it has ordered Coachella Valley mobile home owners Scott Lawson and Harvey Duro to comply with federal drinking water and waste requirements.
The Oasis Mobile Home Park, Indian Village Mobile Home Park, and Desert Mobile Home Park provide housing for several thousand residents and are located on the Torres Martinez Desert Cahuilla Indian Reservation in the Coachella Valley, near Palm Springs, California.
The EPA and the Bureau of Indian Affairs have recently stepped up efforts to ensure human health and environmental protection at mobile home parks located in the area. In July, the Bureau of Indian Affairs conducted an emergency inspection of the Desert Mobile Home Park. In August, the EPA and the BIA conducted joint health and safety assessments of three additional mobile home parks on the reservation.
“These actions will help ensure the health and safety of residents living in these trailer parks,” said Jeff Scott, EPA’s Director for the Communities and Ecosystems Division in the Pacific Southwest region.
Today’s announcement is the result of inspections conducted over the previous year, and includes penalties for failure to adequately monitor drinking water supplies and improper handling and disposal of household garbage, hazardous waste, lead-acid batteries, used oil, and electronic equipment.
Harvey Duro and Desert Mobile Home Park will pay $1,525.00 in penalties, conduct a one-day waste collection event at his mobile home park, and establish a waste management plan with residents.
Within the next three months, the Desert Mobile Home Park will host a one-day waste collection event open to the public. Prior to the event – expected to cost $5,000 - Harvey Duro and Desert Mobile Home Park will notify the Torres Martinez tribe and post flyers in the community. Wastes to be collected at the event include batteries, white goods (washers, dryers, refrigerators and the like), computers and monitors, microwaves, televisions, and used oil.
Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
