Cleanup of contaminated soil at Marina begins this month

Jose Paul Corona

Cleanup of contaminated soil at Marina and Fountain Valley high

schools is set to begin.

The Huntington Beach Union High School District Board approved a

contract at its meeting Tuesday night with Environmental Geosciences

Services to begin the initial cleanup.

In July of 1998 the district removed underground storage tanks at

Marina and Fountain Valley High School. After the tanks were removed the

district learned that gasoline from the tanks had leaked into the

surrounding soil. The fuel stored in the tank was used to power school

vehicles.

The initial cleanup phase will begin this summer as soon as school

lets out, said Assistant Supt. of Business Services Patricia Koch.

Although the final cost of the cleanup is not yet known, Koch said she

expects it will be costly. The district has applied for state funding to

help defer part of the cleanup costs and hopes to be partially

reimbursed, Koch added.

It is also working with the Orange County Health Care Agency to make

sure that the cleanup is done properly, she said. There was a similar

problem at Edison High School, but the problem was less severe, Koch

added.

The contaminated soil poses no danger to students or school staff, but

needs to be decontaminated in order to ensure that ground water is not

contaminated, Koch said.