Parents and staff hear DTSC
presentation on Granite clean-up

     EL CAJON — A handful of concerned staff and parents attended a presentation by the Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) on Tuesday, July 7 at Granite Hills High School to hear plans for removal of toxic substances found at the site. During a state-mandated soil sampling in preparation for a new science building at the school, the site was found to have toxic substances in the soil.
     Granite Hills High School has remained open since the toxins were first detected in March 2008. It is one of three East County high schools most Alpine high school students attend.
     DTSC is overseeing the investigation. Angela Ortega, Project Manager with the DTSC, reviewed the supplemental site investigation results.
     “Arsenic was found in two locations at levels that require removal,” she said. “Butadiene was detected in low levels in groundwater and soil gas.”
     Dr. Bill Bosan, DTSC toxicologist, who oversees human/health risk evaluations, said that trace solvents found in soil gas, for example trichloroethylene (TCE), and trace petroleum products, like gasoline (BTEX), could possibly be associated with the school’s auto shop.
     “A four-year student has a cancer risk of approximately one-in-one million, while long-term faculty members’ risks were one-in-one hundred thousand,” Bosan said. These levels indicate the risk from being exposed to the highest rate of butadiene found, 1,700 micrograms. Bosan referred to the risk as “negligible.”
     “We saw that there was agricultural activity (at the site) from 1928-1958,” said Ortega.
     Bosan said the DTSC concluded that no toxic air was seeping into the buildings. Arsenic was detected in the soil samples taken in front of the gymnasium and the now-cordoned-off approximate 1.3-acre site of the new science building. He mentioned that ingestion of the toxic dirt from dust and absorption of the toxic soil through one’s skin is hazardous.
     Bosan indicated that arsenic was a widely used pesticide/herbicide during the time the land was used agriculturally.
     Ortega said that the environmental investigation’s conclusions revealed that there was no threat to an individual’s health from hazardous substances, however, Ortega said, “Response action is required to prevent potential for future threat to human health and environment. We are requiring that arsenic be removed from the school entirely.”
     Ortega and Bosan outlined the manner in which the clean-up procedures will take place. The procedures, which will be overseen by the DTSC and are expected to take about one week, will be similar to the manner in which asbestos removal is carried out; carefully done as to not to disturb the soil to the point dust is created. Plastic sheeting will be placed on the soil to prevent residual soil from being left behind. Tarps will cover stockpiles.
     There will be a full-time health and safety officer who, every two hours and when dust is visible during excavation, will monitor the area. Workers will cover the loaded contaminated dirt and the tires of the dirt removal trucks. The 56 truckloads, tantamount to 740 cubic yards, will promptly be removed from the school site. The trucks will be sprayed and the tires covered before departure to an authorized disposal facility.
     DTSC personnel had not determined specifically when the clean-up will take place.
     One parent at the meeting expressed concern about his daughter, who is attending summer school at the site, concluding July 17. It has not yet been determined whether or not the clean-up procedures will take place during summer school.
     In March 2008 parents received an envelope including a fact sheet and a brief description of the DTSC findings. The contents of the envelope also notified parents that soil samples were taken that contained above average amounts of arsenic and butadiene.
     Last month, The Alpine Sun, also reported that some students have suffered symptoms that are consistent with those due to exposure of butadiene. Unsubstantiated reports from parents and students claim that at least two Granite Hills students have been diagnosed with cancer — one with testicular cancer and the other with brain cancer. The latter has since succumbed.
     Granite Hills High School was constructed in portions, beginning in 1960. One individual, who wishes to remain anonymous, who moved within close proximity to the school in the mid-60s and spent lots of time playing at the school site, said the area was his “backyard,” where he played in the dirt, kicking up dust, riding bikes, playing sports, and flying model airplanes.
     “I basically lived on the school grounds, mostly at the football field and baseball field,” the former resident of the neighborhood said, noting he also spent a lot of time in the decomposed granite areas, in the school hallways, and playing in nearby vacant lots where houses and Montgomery Middle School now sit. He also attended the school, graduating and leaving the area in the late 1970s. Some of the original buildings, such as the school gym that is in question, still exist in the locations they were in when he attended the school.
     He feels the situation is over-exaggerated, “I know lots of people who went there and lived near there but none that have any problems,” he said, noting he has not suffered any negative effects.
     Sometime after the clean-up, the soil will be retested. If it is determined that elevated levels of toxins no longer exist, the district will receive a clearance to construct its new, long-awaited science building.
     Sampling is conducted at the expense of the Grossmont Union High School District.
     To review documents related to soil sampling and the clean-up process, visit www.envirostor.dtsc.ca.gov/public or visit the El Cajon branch library at 201 East Douglas Avenue. For questions, call Yvette LaDuke at the DTSC. The toll-free number is (866) 495-5651. Comments will be accepted by mail, postmarked no later than July 20, and addressed to Yvette LaDuke, Public Participation Specialist, 9211 Oakdale Avenue, Chatsworth, Calif. 91311, or e-mail to LaDuke.

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