Campus Study Uncovers No Toxic Hazards

State environmental officials declared Tuesday that they have found no factual basis for a three-week scare over contamination at Jefferson Middle School in South-Central Los Angeles, saying that students there are exposed to no higher levels of toxic substances than are prevalent throughout the county.

But the inquiry did uncover weaknesses in the Los Angeles Unified School District’s environmental review process. So officials say that they are working on a plan that would make the state, rather than the district, responsible for certifying the safety of school sites.

Jefferson was built on land contaminated by chemicals from a gas station and a furniture manufacturing plant. The district bought the property in 1991 and cleaned it up by removing about 15 feet of earth and replacing it with soil from Caltrans excavations.

But in 1996, state environmental officials notified the district of possible contamination from the site of a former chrome-plating plant across the street. The district was allowed to open the school this summer after an assessment concluded it was safe.

However, state Sen. Tom Hayden (D-Los Angeles) uncovered records that he said showed that systems designed to remove toxic substances from the school environment were not working properly.

The latest risk assessment showed that levels of toxic materials measured in the school, in the air outside it and in the top six inches of soil were in most cases less than average concentrations across the county and in no cases greater by a significant amount.

A state toxicologist said a person could live on the campus without exposure to unhealthy levels of any toxic substance.

But Hayden called the new assessment only a “partial statement of the truth,” adding that “it is fair only to say that current tests are favorable, but that more testing is necessary before Jefferson is deemed safe.”

David Koch, the district’s chief administrative officer, said he is adopting several new policies, including creating school safety teams to involve community groups and elected officials in the environmental review of land formerly used for industry or commerce. He also plans to put new projects on hold until the state can take over environmental assessments of proposed school sites.