Schools to Let State Oversee Toxic Cleanup

The Los Angeles Unified School District has agreed to pay the state of California about $470,000 for the oversight of environmental studies and cleanups at two school sites, the California Environmental Protection Agency announced Wednesday.

Two voluntary cleanup agreements call for the Department of Toxic Substances Control to provide technical review of Jefferson Middle School in South-Central Los Angeles and the Belmont Learning Complex under construction west of downtown.

The school district agreed to seek state certification of the two sites, along with a handful of others, after state officials found that environmental contamination had not been adequately assessed.

Initial testing has determined that Jefferson, which opened last summer, does not pose an immediate threat to students or faculty.

But further study must be done to determine the long-term hazards from toxic chemicals in the soil and ground water.

Belmont, which is about 50% complete, must be protected against seepage of methane, which is explosive, and toxic chemicals such as benzene.

The payment to the state for oversight of Belmont will be in addition to the $700,000 the district is paying to a team of consultants that will conduct the study.

The cleanup cost is unknown, but is expected to run into the millions of dollars.