Success Stories - Siting Renewable Energy on Contaminated Land
Pemaco Superfund Site, Maywood, California
Solar Panels Power Onsite Soil and Ground Water Treatment System
Site Description
The 1.4-acre Pemaco Superfund site is located on the banks of the Los
Angeles River, in a mixed industrial and residential neighborhood in
Maywood, California. The City of Maywood now owns the Pemaco
property and has rezoned it from industrial to recreational use. The city is in
the process of building the 7.3-acre Maywood Riverfront Park (MRP) on six
properties surrounding, and including, the Pemaco Superfund Site.
Property History
Pemaco began onsite chemical mixing operations in the
late 1940s. Pemaco was then purchased by the LUX
Chemical Company on July 27, 1988, and abandoned on
June 21, 1991. In December 1993, the facility burned to
the ground. Although the fire completely destroyed the
warehouse, six 55-gallon drums, several above-ground
storage tanks, and 31 underground storage tanks
remained on the site.
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Current Status:
EPA Region 9, Maywood, CA
1.4 Acres
Local Government - City of Maywood,
CA
Custom chemical blender 1950-1991
Petroleum hydrocarbons; volatile
organic compounds; chlorinated
hydrocarbons
Superfund—Clean Air Initiative
Solar PV
$30,227
City of Maywood, CA
Installation of Solar PV system
completed July 7, 2007
The site is contaminated with high levels of volatile
organic compounds (VOCs) in the soil beneath the site.
The ground water beneath the site was also contaminated
with VOCs including: perchloroethylene (PCE),
trichloroethylene (TCE), trichloroethane (TCA),
dichloroethane (DCA) and vinyl chloride (VC). On
January 1, 1999, the site was placed on the National
Priorities List of Superfund sites. To clean up soil and
ground water contamination at the site, EPA began
construction in 1998 of an onsite treatment system that
incorporated multiple technologies including ERH and
heat-enhanced bioremediation in the DNAPL source
area and combinations of dual-phase extraction, ground
water pump and treat/containment, bioremediation,
and monitored natural attenuation for other
contaminated zones.
Renewable Energy Development
EPA Region 9 completed construction of the onsite
ground water treatment system in the summer of 2006.
In July 2007, an Xantrax Grid Tie Solar Inverter
photovoltaic (PV) system was installed on the remediation facilities building to help power remediation
equipment used to clean up the soil and ground water contamination at the site. The installation of the solar PV
system was the first pilot project of the EPA Region 9 Cleanup - Clean Air Initiative, designed to facilitate
reduction of diesel and greenhouse gas emissions at Superfund cleanup and redevelopment sites. After applying a
$9,000 rebate, the net cost of the system was $21,000. As of July 2008 (after one year of operation) the solar PV
system generated 6,172 kilowatt-hours per year, an annual electricity savings of $2,839. In addition, the system is
estimated to have prevented the emission of 3.3 tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, emissions comparable
to 7,600 vehicle miles per year.
PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS:
The installation of the solar PV system represents the first
pilot project of EPA's new Cleanup - Clean Air Initiative.
(http://epa.gov/region09/cleanup-c/ean-ai/)
By July 2008—after one year of operation—the solar PV
system generated 6,172 kilowatt-hours, an annual
savings of $2,839 on electricity costs.
The solar PV system results in the avoidance of 3.3 tons
of C02 into the atmosphere each year, equivalent to the
emissions generated by 7,600 vehicle miles.
CONTACT: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 9
Rose Marie Caraway, EPA Site Manager: 1-415-972-3158, Caraway.Rosemarie@epa.gov
To learn more about siting renewable energy on contaminated land, visit: www.epa.gov/renewableenergyland
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