Contaminated soil testing at Carousel tract in Carson confirms residents' health and safety fears

[tofuandbeer]

Source: The Daily Breeze

Until recently, Barbara Post struggled to get people to react with urgency to her claims that Shell Oil's contamination of her Carson neighborhood caused her neighbor's 132 tumors, her daughter's flesh-eating disease and her deceased husband's irregular heartbeat.

After all, state health officials have repeatedly said the extensive contamination found underneath the 50-acre Carousel tract does not pose an immediate threat to human health. Constant exposure to the air may result in a slightly increased cancer risk over dozens of years, experts said. But there was no apparent rush to get people out of the area when large deposits of waste oil were found there about five years ago.

The petroleum was left from a Shell Oil tank farm that operated on the site from the 1920s to 1966, when the Carousel tract was developed. When the tank farm was demolished, concrete oil reservoirs were crushed and left in the ground along with untold amounts of waste petroleum.

On Monday night, the Carson City Council is expected to approve a city resolution declaring a "condition of emergency within the Carousel tract requiring immediate and comprehensive action by appropriate state regulatory agencies and the attorney general."

Read more: http://www.dailybreeze.com/news/ci_23744616/contaminated-soil-testing-at-carousel-tract-carson-confirms

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I recall reading about this a few years back. It's a very sad situation.

[MotherPetrie]

1. Tragic and horrifying story.

[ConcernedCanuk]

2. And good luck fighting "Big Oil".

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From the article at the link:

"But for residents like Post, there's no question dangers lurk beneath homes. They have been told not to garden or dig in the soil for any reason. Occasionally, a dug-up hole in the neighborhood reveals smelly, thick black goo"

Big Companies have no shame.

They will spend millions on lawyers to avoid taking responsibility for their lack of conscience.

Capitalism works great don't it ???

CC

[mbperrin]

3. Typical Shell. In the 70s, they used a leaking wellbore for salt water disposal.

Within 4 years, they had ruined all the subsurface water, and 11,000 people had water wells that were pumping water 100 times saltier than the Atlantic Ocean. The people, all in an unincorporated area, had to form a water district, take on millions in debt to build pipeline and water tank, and then agreed to pay 150% of the regular rate of the city of Odessa.

Shell never paid a penny nor issued an apology. Complaints against them with the Railroad Commission, which "regulates" the oil and gas industry, were answered like this:

"Hey, we had good water until they started pumping salt water down this well on Palomino Street."

"Well, we asked Shell if it leaks, and they said no. End of case. Must be natural phenomenon."

And that was that.

[Scootaloo]

4. Well, who could have ever guessed...

That having this in your neighborhood might pose a health hazard?



(Granted, that's the BP-Tesoro refinery in Carson, not the old Shell... but still)

[NYC_SKP]

9. Yep. BP sold it to Tesoro last month for $2,400,000,000.00

$2.4 billion!

http://fuelfix.com/blog/2013/06/03/bp-registers-2-4b-as-carson-calif-refinery-sale-completed/

I've taken tours of the place on two occasions.

[tofuandbeer]

11. Regrettably, I live not far from there, and even closer to a Koch Brothers refinerery. :(

[niyad]

5. geez, does the name hinkley come to mind, anyone? who in the HELL approved building on a

toxic dump? forget I asked, this is the same area that built a school and admin building on a toxic waste dump.

at least the gold ore processing plant residue underneath one of the developments here has not killed anyone yet--at least, none we know of.

[salin]

6. horrible situation. Does anyone else catch the irony of the name of the town (Carson City) and era?

Per Rachel Carson's book Silent Spring - that first broke to the public the dangers to the environment (and people living in those environment) of toxic pollutants - the book was published in the early 60s. Don't mean to detract from the seriousness of the conversation - more to note the sad irony and the deadly results of ignoring that era's Cassandra's call.

[tofuandbeer]

12. Wow! Good catch!

[SunSeeker]

7. Carson has a lot of pollution issues. Isn't that where the old Montrose DDT plant was?

On edit..yes, it was affected and is part of the Superfund site cleanup...

DDT has been found in 1) soils at the former Montrose plant site and surrounding commercial properties, ...... 151 East Carson Street, Carson ...

http://yosemite.epa.gov/r9/sfund/r9sfdocw.nsf/3dec8ba3252368428825742600743733/b7db9903773ec74188257007005e93ed

[tofuandbeer]

13. Yeah, you're right.

I really regret moving to this area (the South Bay, it's called) after reading all this stuff. The weather is nice, the oceans and seaside cliffs are gorgeous, but the oil companies have been wreaking havoc on the area since the early 1900's.

[SunSeeker]

15. A lot of So. Cal. sits on old oil fields.

Most of Long Beach, Baldwin Hills, Beverly Hills, the list goes on and on . Remember when the sidewalks caught on fire by the Farmers Market in the Fairfax district?

[KansDem]

16. "A lot of So. Cal. sits on old oil fields."

http://www.retronaut.com/2011/12/beach-oil-wells-southern-california

I don't remember the sidewalk fires, but I do remember the 1958 Hancock Oil fire on Signal Hill:



We were living in Long Beach and watched the clouds of smoke from our backyard.

[L0oniX]

8. Capitalism at its finest! Love Canal land forsale now too?

[Mnemosyne]

10. New lawsuit filed in Feb. 2013 by people living there! "The weird popping and hissing sounds coming"

NIAGARA FALLS – The weird popping and hissing sounds coming from their basement offered the first sign that something was wrong.

Then a foul chemical smell filled the first floor of Melanie and Zachary Herr’s home, burning their eyes and nostrils.

Next, their dogs and cats started vomiting. In the basement, the cap blew off a sewer pipe.

“I’m getting out of here,” Melanie told her husband that day in February 2011, “and I’m taking the kids.”

much more at link:

http://www.buffalonews.com/20130209/113_million_love_canal_lawsuit_is_history_repeating_itself.html


Apparently they were told it was safe to move back into the area in the 90's and have found out they were lied to. I am shocked, shocked I tell you.

And it sounds as if NY is protecting someone.

[tofuandbeer]

14. +1

[L0oniX]

18. Lied to? In Ameddikka? The Gdddreat Satan? Shocking! n/t

[Mnemosyne]

19. I know! Color me stunned!

NOT!

[Sunlei]

17. US sued the ciggie corps. Sue the damn chem corps and make them provide healthcare system for all.

They profited major for several decades off the backs of citizens. Use the Federal court system for the good of the citizens. In memory off all who have died.