Public Interest Briefs

Center Seeks to Represent Citizens Living Near Stringfellow Acid Pits

Citizens living near the Stringfellow Acid Pits in Riverside County have asked the Center to intervene on their behalf in the massive litigation between the state and federal governments and the scores of companies who used the Stringfellow site to dump their highly toxic wastes.

The cleanup of Stringfellow emerged as a political as well as an environmental issue last year amidst charges that the Environmental Protection Agency withheld funds for the cleanup in order to defeat Governor Jerry Brown’s bid for the Senate. People living near the dump are worried that their interests may not be adequately protected by governmental authorities.

The state and federal agencies have compiled a poor record on handling Stringfellow’s cleanup. In 1977, for example, the state permitted the release of 800,00 gallons of highly toxic waste to relieve pressure on the Stringfellow Dam but failed to give adequate notice to nearby residents. Past interim cleanup efforts have failed to remove the dangerous mess, and the current temporary containment, a clay dome over the empty pits, is eroding in places.

In seeking to intervene in the litigation, the Center has raised questions about the governments’ resolve and ability to pursue the lawsuit vigorously. For example, the Air Force was the ninth largest dumper of wastes at Stringfellow and, therefore, is liable for a significant share of the cleanup cost. The Air Force is not, however, named in the current suit. Likewise, the state issued permits for dumping and maintained control over the site for many years and, thus, may also be responsible for at least a portion of the cleanup expenses. Most importantly, the suit, as filed by the state and federal governments, fails to call for the total cleanup and removal of all toxic wastes from the area.

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