HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES - 03311987 - 2.8 THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS OF CONTRA COSTA COUNTY, CALIFORNIA
Adopted this Order on March 31, 1987 , by the following vote:
AYES: Supervisors Fanden, Schroider, Torlakson, McPeak
NOES: None
ABSENT: Supervisor Powers
ABSTAIN:
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SUBJECT: Transfer of Liquid Waste from Panoche IT Facility, Benicia,
to Vine Hill , Martinez
The Board received the report (dated March 16 , 1987) from
Mark Finucane, Health Services Director, and Wendel Brunner, M.D. ,
Director of Public Health, on the transfer of liquid waste from the
Panoche IT facility in Benicia to the Vine Hill Facility in Martinez
in 1986 .
IT IS BY THE BOARD ORDERED that the referenced report is
REFERRED to the IT Task Force.
I hereby certify that this is a true and correct cop rof
an action taken and entered on the rnln'ute;
Board of Supervisors on tho date shown.
cc: Supervisor Fanden PHIL BATCHELOR, Clerk of the Roarc3
IT Task Force of Supervisors and County Adnanistratcr
Health Services Director
County Administrator gy �_/�-22!- . Deputy
Clerk of the Board
CONTRA COSTA COUNTY
HEALTH SERVICES DEPARTMENT
To: Board of Supervisors Date: March 16, 1987
via Phil Batchelor, Cou Administrator
From: Mark Finuc anerectSubject:Transfer Of Liquid Waste From
/ q
Health Services Departmen �`'� Panoche IT Facility To Vine Hill
by Wendel Brunner, M.D. ' Martinez In 1986
Director of Public Health
In preparation for the February 26th IT Task Force Meeting at the request of
County Health Services, Dwight Hoenig of the State Department of Health Services
prepared a computer printout identifying the sources of incoming hazardous
materials treated at the Vine Hill facility in Martinez. That computer printout
was arranged so as to identify incoming waste sources in descending order of the
amount that they contributed to the total waste treated at Vine Hill in 1986.
That printout showed that the major source of waste for the Vine Hill facility
came from another IT Corporation facility in Panoche, and consisted of 94604.68
tons of liquid waste comprising 45.69% of the total waste processed by the Vine
Hill facility in 1986. The next largest contributor to the Vine Hill facility
was Pacific Gas & Electric which accounted for 5. 11% of the waste processed.
The Health Services Department has contacted the Regional Water Quality Control
Board and the State Department of Health Services to look into the circumstances
involving this transfer between facilities. During the months following the
exceptional heavy rains of February, 1986 approximately 23M gallons of somewhat
contaminated surface runoff collected onsite in a central , excavated area at the
Panoche facility in Benicia. This water came in contact with soils at the
Panoche site and became further contaminated. Copper was apparently the prin-
ciple contaminant of the water; we have requested the specific analyses of the
water from the Regional Water Quality Control Board.
The Regional Water Quality Control Board ordered IT not to discharge this runoff
into any surface waters or the Bay. As the IT ponds at Panoche were already at
or near capacity, IT impounded the contaminated water and transported it in
trucks to Vine Hill to comply with the Regional Board' s order. The waste water
was carried in several thousand truckloads over a period of months and
discharged at the Vine Hill facility in Martinez.
This discharge was not reported under Proposition #65, as the transfer from
Panoche to Vine Hill was legal and made to comply with a Water Board order not
to discharge. In addition, this transfer of hazardous waste to Vine Hill was
not the likely threat to public health which requires a Proposition #65 report.
However, the Health Services Department is writing to State Health and the
Regional Water Quality Board requesting that the Contra Costa Health Services
Department be notified when orders of those regulatory agencies are likely to
impact on Contra Costa County.
WB:rm
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