Rapid Cleanup Plan Adopted by San Gabriel Basin Water Quality Authority

The San Gabriel Basin Water Quality Authority has adopted an accelerated plan to clean up groundwater pollution in its Los Angeles County area. The group also plans to seek recovery of costs, if necessary, from those responsible for the pollution, WQA officials announced. Adopted on a 5 to 0 vote March 6, the plan is designed to accelerate the cleanup schedule now being pursued by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The plan recognizes that the pollution problem is so critical in some areas that immediate action is needed to stop the spread of underground toxins before they contaminate even more drinking water wells. "We can't wait any longer," said Bob G. Kuhn, chairman of the board. "Rapid action is needed now in specific areas of the basin to stem the spread of toxins under ground. The Water Quality Authority has a mandate from the state legislature to ensure that cleanup takes place to protect and restore our precious groundwater supplies." Previously, under the federal Superfund, clean up projects would have been postponed while a lengthy federal process of negotiating settlement agreements with the responsible polluters was completed. The WQA action instead launches a new initiative to immediately begin these clean up projects and, if needed, seek recovery costs later. Recovering the water generated by cleanup facilities for beneficial use is a high priority, rather than dumping it into channels that lead to the ocean. Under the plan, most of the purified water would be used to restore the drinking water supply for the 1.4 million San Gabriel Valley residents, since increasing levels of pollution have forced the closure of dozens of drinking water wells. The San Gabriel Basin Water Quality Authority was established by the State of California in 1993 to plan, coordinate and facilitate groundwater cleanup in the San Gabriel Basin. Over the years, the basin gradually became contaminated with synthetic organic compounds used primarily as solvents in industrial and commercial activities. The contamination was discovered in 1979 and large portions of the basin were placed on the federal Superfund cleanup list in 1984. To date, the Water Quality Authority has recovered over $8 million in cleanup funding through voluntary agreements with responsible parties. SOURCE: San Gabriel Basin Water Quality Authority