Features

With a draft plan in hand for the cleanup of contaminated soil and groundwater at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, the state Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) is calling for public input on the proposal. 

Details of the proposed cleanup effort and the history of contamination on the site are available online at www.dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/LBNL/index.html. 

The public comment period opened last week and will continue through June 8. 

A public hearing on the cleanup will be held on May 26 during the public comment period at the North Berkeley Senior Center, 1901 Hearst Ave., starting at 6 p.m. 

DTSC has identified 15 different areas of contamination on the LBNL grounds, of which two were decontaminated during the last two years. 

The DTSC plans don’t include radioactive decontamination, which falls under the purview of the U.S. Department of Energy. 

Surveys of the facility have uncovered a wide range of noxious substances in the soil and groundwater, including a variety of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), most notably solvents used in cleaning equipment. 

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