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U.S. EPA TAKING OVER CLEANUP OF HAZARDOUS WASTE SITE

Release Date: 6/4/2002
Contact Information: Lisa Fasano, EPA Press Officer(415) 947-4307, Cell: (415) 760-5421

     State of California referring site to EPA for removal of toxic waste
                               
     SAN FRANCISCO -- At the request of the California Department of Toxic Substances Control, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is assuming responsibility for the immediate cleanup of Denova Environmental Inc. in Rialto, Calif., a hazardous waste storage facility.

     U.S. EPA crews will spend the next several weeks identifying and labeling thousands of containers of hazardous and explosive waste that have been stored at the site.  Once the toxic wastes have been identified, the EPA will develop a cleanup plan and remove all waste from the site.

     "Once DTSC notified us they were referring the site to the agency we mobilized our crew and had them out at the site within 48 hours," said Steve Calanog, EPA's on-scene coordinator for the Pacific Southwest Region.  "We feel this site poses an immediate environmental threat.  We are moving quickly to eliminate the hazards and get this site cleaned up."

     Working through the weekend, the EPA's emergency response crew moved in and began leading the investigation to determine what toxic chemicals have been stored at the site.  So far crews have found methamphetamine lab wastes, shock sensitive material, medical waste, corrosives, toxins and flammable compounds.  The hazardous materials are being categorized and properly repackaged for disposal at a permitted offsite facility.

     Cleanup at this facility is expected to last 2-3 weeks to remove both the hazardous waste and the explosive materials.  Once completed the EPA will turn the site back to the state DTSC for final closeout.  The EPA will pursue enforcement action against potentially liable parties to recover cleanup costs which could exceed several hundred thousand dollars.
     
     The EPA is receiving local assistance from the Rialto Fire Department and the San Bernardino County Hazardous Materials Team.

     Denova received a notice of violation from DTSC in March 2001 and the facility has had limited operations since that time.