News Release

T – 11 – 16
Barbara A. Lee, Director

Contact: Russ Edmondson
(916) 214-2208
redmondson@dtsc.ca.gov

DTSC Dedicates New Treatment Plant at Stringfellow Site

JURUPA VALLEY – The Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) today dedicated a new $52 million treatment facility at the Stringfellow Superfund site (Site). This facility represents the State’s long-term commitment to protecting its residents and the environment from chemical contaminants. The state-of-the-art Pyrite Canyon Treatment Facility (PCTF) is an upgraded, modernized and reliable replacement for the aging Pre-Treatment Plant and positions the State to continue the cleanup at this site for more than 30 years.

Taking only three years for construction, the PCTF can treat 120 gallons per minute or about 700,000 gallons per week which is slightly greater than the capacity of an Olympic size swimming pool. The plant was designed with the foresight for further expansion if additional treatment processes are needed. And, after completing the final touches, the PCTF will be a LEED Silver certified facility.

“This new permanent facility demonstrates DTSC’s commitment to protect California’s residents and environment,” said Barbara A. Lee, Director of DTSC. “The Pyrite Canyon Treatment Facility is an example of DTSC developing the most practical and feasible remedy while addressing all potential contaminants and threats.”

In 1983, the Stringfellow Hazardous Waste Facility became the first federal Superfund site in California and was designated the highest priority site in the state. It is one of the most significant and storied hazardous waste sites in the country and it spurred the creation of many of the hazardous waste laws and regulations on the books today.

Over the years, DTSC’s collaboration with the community, including Penny Newman, Executive Director of the Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice, has been an integral part of the cleanup. Newman’s invaluable input helped devise the path forward, which included the construction of the Pyrite Canyon Treatment Facility being dedicated today.

Throughout the planning and construction, DTSC worked closely with the state  Department of General Services and the Department of Finance as well as the local Santa Ana Watershed Protection Authority, the City of Jurupa Valley, the Chino Basin Watermaster, the Jurupa Community Services District and the Orange County Sanitation District.

Stringfellow was operated as a liquid industrial waste disposal site from 1956 until its closure in 1972. During that period, 34 million gallons of liquid hazardous waste from metal finishing, electroplating, DDT production and aerospace propulsion industries were disposed of in unlined evaporation ponds at the 17-acre disposal area. Over the years, the contents of those ponds moved through the soil and fractured bedrock underlying the site, entered the groundwater and migrated south under the community of Jurupa Valley (previously Glen Avon). In 1998, DTSC assumed sole responsibility for future cleanup work at Stringfellow on behalf of the State of California, the responsible party.

Documents pertaining to Stringfellow can be found here.

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FOR GENERAL INQUIRIES: Contact the Department of Toxic Substances Control by phone at (800) 728-6942 or visit www.dtsc.ca.gov. To report illegal handling, discharge, or disposal of hazardous waste, call the Waste Alert Hotline at (800) 698-6942.