The Region : Treatment Plant Installed

Workers on Tuesday began installing a $800,000 treatment plant to save a polluted Baldwin Park well.

The well, on Maine Avenue near Irwindale, was polluted last year by carcinogenic compounds commonly used in industries and businesses. Water officials say the pollution stemmed from one of the four large plumes of contamination that plague large portions of the underground water supply of the San Gabriel Valley.

The need for the treatment plant is heightened because of the drought, said Stanley D. Yarbrough, general manager the Valley County Water District, which is building the facility. “Without this project, the district’s existing well supply is not going to be enough to meet the high demands during the hot summer months,” he said.

The district serves 40,000 residential and business customers in Baldwin Park, Irwindale and West Covina. Of the district’s 10 wells, seven have been shut down because of pollution. To finance the project, the water district in February imposed a 25% rate increase, most of which will go toward the costs of the treatment plant.