Waste-Treatment Plant in Vernon Wins State, Federal Approval : Environment: Critics say the site, where hazardous materials would be processed, is too close to residents.

A proposal to build a treatment plant for hazardous waste just north of a high school and homes in neighboring Huntington Park has won final approval from state and federal health officials.

The state Department of Health Services and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued a permit last Wednesday to Chem-Clear Inc., allowing the firm to treat as much as 140,000 gallons of hazardous industrial waste each day.

Chem-Clear spokesman Xavier Hermosillo said construction is scheduled to begin this summer, and the plant should be completed by the end of the year.

The plant will be built in an abandoned factory at Slauson and Boyle avenues in heavily industrial Vernon. But the site is on Huntington Park’s northern border, less than a block from Huntington Park High School. Dozens of homes are also located nearby.

The proposal to build the plant drew strong opposition from area politicians, residents and students during the months-long permit process, and some opponents said they would continue to battle the plant.

State Sen. Art Torres (D-Los Angeles) has appealed to state and federal health officials to revoke the permit. His district includes the plant site.

“The community around the Chem-Clear facility will be placed at an unreasonable risk,” Torres said in an interview. Torres also said he is dissatisfied with cleanup plans in the event of a spill.

A spokeswoman for Assemblywoman Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-Los Angeles), a past opponent of the plant, said Roybal-Allard is waiting to review the final permit.

Huntington Park High School health teacher Ric Loya, a local resident and community activist, said he also is waiting to review the permit, but remains opposed to placing a treatment plant near the high school and homes.

But Chem-Clear’s Hermosillo said the plant will operate safely. “Based on the extensive research and studies done by the EPA, by the state and by independent consultants, the risks associated with (the plant) are well below acceptable levels,” he said.

Industrial wastes, including hexavalent chromium, acids and other hazardous chemicals from Los Angeles area factories, will be hauled to the facility by tanker on freeways and city streets. Water would be separated from the materials and discharged into sewers. Sludge containing hazardous metals and other materials would be hauled by rail or truck to a Utah landfill that is owned by Chem-Clear, a subsidiary of Union Pacific Railroad.

Chem-Clear officials have long maintained that the plant will perform a public service by enabling area factories to properly dispose of their waste, rather than storing it in leaky barrels or dumping the waste illegally.

A study by a private firm indicated that plant emissions would not pose a substantial risk.

The plant would not incinerate wastes but would emit minute amounts of hazardous chemicals during processing. Depending on the waste treated, those emissions could include tiny amounts of such chemicals as benzene, a carcinogen.

The study indicated that such emissions would cause, at most, fewer than one additional case of cancer per million people--well within the range considered acceptable by state health officials.

The study indicated that a spill at the facility or by a truck hauling hazardous waste could cause injuries, but the study indicated that such a spill would be highly unlikely.

Florence Pearson, senior hazardous materials specialist for the state Department of Health Services, said the plant has plenty of safeguards to prevent such accidents from happening. For example, up to 11,440 gallons of flammable waste could be stored at the site in special rooms designed to keep a fire from spreading.

Chem-Clear “met all of our laws, regulations and guidelines,” said Pearson, noting that Chem-Clear was required to draft contingency plans to deal with various possible accidents.

The firm made some concessions in response to public concerns.

Chem-Clear dropped its proposal to treat cyanide waste at the facility. The permit allows Chem-Clear to store limited amounts of cyanide waste before transporting it for disposal, but Hermosillo said the company has no intention of doing so.

The firm also wanted to store waste that contained up to 18% hydrochloric acid. Under the permit, waste may contain up to 10% hydrochloric acid.

The firm also has agreed not to transport waste when children are going to or from school, Hermosillo said.