STANTON : $13,000 OKd to Test Quality of Water

The City Council will spend $13,000 to drill wells and see whether a spill of potentially hazardous hydrocarbons poses a threat to ground-water quality.

The spill occurred in 1988 when a 550-gallon underground reserve fuel tank was removed from the city yard, Director of Public Works Fred Wickman said. Although the tank had been emptied, at least a gallon of gasoline remained inside and leaked onto the ground.

Additionally, for years, tanks there had no receptacles to catch spilled gasoline when vehicles were fueled.

The spill concerns public health officials because the ground-water level there is eight feet below the surface. However, no wells exist near the area, so drinking water would not likely be affected, Wickman said.

In April, an investigation of the city yard site at 10652 Bell St. revealed high levels of toxic hydrocarbons, xylene and ethylbenzene.

“Our evaluation is that the contamination is localized,” said Jim Severns, an official of Earth Technology Corp., charged with installing the monitoring wells.

The recent study found no contaminants in any of five bore holes made within a few yards of the site, he said.

However, Severns said the Orange County Health Care Agency and state guidelines require that the monitoring wells be used to make sure that the ground water is safe.

If the ground water is contaminated, the city must pump the water out, cleanse it and replace it. Wickman said the results of the water tests should be known within 45 days.