City of Industry Community Fund
Services for Residents
The Center for Environmental Health (CEH) is offering free services for eligible residents who live near the Quemetco facility (also known as Ecobat Resources California) to reduce their exposure to lead and arsenic in exposed soil.
The period to opt in to receive services ended on November 15, 2024.
What are the services?
The services provided are aimed at helping reduce the exposure to lead and arsenic in exposed soil in your properties. These services include:
- Landscaping services provided by professional and local businesses that will aim to place a physical barrier of turf/grass, mulch, or other landscaping option to minimize contact with contaminated soil.
- A gardening and landscaping workshop designed by a certified Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response (HAZWOPER) expert that will teach residents how to do their own gardening project to limit their exposure.
- Soil screening of open, exposed soil in residents’ property. Note: this service may be handled by a partner organization depending on resident demand.
Who Qualified?
The settlement agreement with Quemetco specified that the community fund would be used to reduce the exposure of residents within ¼ mile radius of the Quemetco facility. To see what properties qualified, please refer to the map of affected area.
Lawsuit and Community Fund Background
The Problem
- Exposed soil around the intersection of 7th Street and Salt Lake Ave. in the City of Industry has been contaminated with lead and arsenic.
- Lead and arsenic are toxic metals that can damage your health.
- Exposure to these toxic metals can occur by touching contaminated soil, breathing dust when the soil has been disturbed, or even by eating vegetables grown in the contaminated soil.
- Long-term exposure to these metals can lead to increased rates of cancer and other adverse health effects.
- Children are at greater risk of developing health problems from exposure to lead and arsenic since they often play outdoors, can touch contaminated soil, and can even ingest some of it.
What Now?
- CEH is administering the community fund which will be used exclusively for the purpose of reducing exposures to lead and arsenic, mainly through exposed soil, in the neighborhood located within 1/4 mile of Quemetco’s facility.
- CEH conducted research and gathered input from environmental experts to determine effective methods for reducing human exposure to lead and arsenic in soil.
- CEH gathered input from affected residents on how they would like to use the community fund.
- Based on all this input, CEH will use the fund to offer, at no cost to residents, the following health protective measures and tools:
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- Landscaping services provided by professional and local businesses
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- A gardening and landscaping workshop that will teach residents how to do their own gardening project
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- Soil screening of open, exposed soil in residents’ properties.
- Residents were able to opt into receiving these measures until November 15, 2024.
Contact Information
If you have any questions, please feel free to connect with us at [email protected].
Timeline
- Quemetco is a lead-acid battery recycler located in the City of Industry that has operated since 1972 and has had a history of pollution related violations.
- The exposed soil surrounding the Quemetco facility has been contaminated with lead and arsenic.
- CEH alleged that Quemetco was the cause of this contamination and sued Quemetco in 2018 for violating Proposition 65’s requirement to keep people informed about exposures to toxic chemicals.
- After several years of community advocacy and legal battles, in 2023 Quemetco agreed to pay $500,000 towards a community fund that would help residents in the affected area reduce their exposure.
- Additionally, Quemetco agreed to issue Prop. 65 warnings in English, Spanish, and Mandarin to people living within 1/4 mile of the facility, as well as publicly release its emissions data on the company website. Emissions data is one way to track pollution from a particular business.
Resources
2023 Quemetco Factsheet – 2023.08.17_English & Spanish_Lead & Arsenic in Your Community_Factsheet re Quemetco.pdf
In partnership with
No great efforts are done in isolation. The Center for Environmental Health is delighted to work in partnership with Environmental Justice San Gabriel Valley (EJSGV), resident volunteers and others to guide the use of the City of Industry Community Fund. Below is more about them:
Environmental Justice San Gabriel Valley (EJSGV) is a group of volunteers who have been working together for almost two years. They focus on community organizing around ecological and public health issues, and also work on educational programs and promoting corporate accountability in the Puente Valley area. They collaborate with other local environmental and social justice groups, conducting soil sampling efforts and providing educational initiatives for the community. Additionally, they have built digital platforms to make important neighborhood information accessible to the public.
