EPA
U.S. Filter Westates
U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY* REGION 9 • SAN FRANCISCO, CA • FEBRUARY2004
Emergency Response at Westates UPDATED
Westates is a hazardous waste storage
and treatment facility located on the Colo-
rado River Indian Reservation near Parker,
Arizona. At Westates, spent carbon is
treated in a carbon regeneration furnace.
To receive information on other topics
regarding Westates, please contact EPA.
Contact information is located below.
EMERGENCY RESPONSE
EPA requires Westates to be prepared to respond to
emergencies at their facility. An emergency is defined as
a fire, explosion, or hazardous waste spill that may
threaten human health and the environment.
Westates must describe in a written plan how they will
respond to emergencies. This is called their Contin-
gency Plan. Westates submitted their Contingency Plan
to EPAin their permit application in 1995, and in a more
recent submittal in 2002. From time to time, Westates
updates the Contingency Plan with new information.
CONTACT EPA:


If you have questions about Westates please contact:
Wenona Wilson
Community Involvement Coordinator
Phone: 415-972-3239
email: wilson.wenona@epa.gov


Iff

Mail:


Wenona Wilson (SFD-3)
U.S. EPA, Region 9
75 Hawthorne Street
San Francisco, CA 94105
or call our
toll free number:
1-800-231-3075
WHAT IS IN WESTATES' CONTINGENCY
PLAN?
¦	Designation of an Emergency Coordinator.
This is a Westates employee who is responsible
for directing the response if there is an emergency
at Westates.
¦	Description of how Westates will respond to
and control an on-site fire, explosion, or hazard-
ous waste spill.
¦	Identification of local public safety agencies
who will assist Westates if necessary during an
emergency. These include:
Colorado River Indian Tribes Fire Dept.
Y Colorado River Indian Tribes Police Dept.
i
Parker Fire Dept.
Parker Police Dept.
a
¦ Description of how Westates will clean up
equipment and surrounding soil if contaminated
by afire, explosion, or hazardous waste spill.
If there is an emergency at Westates
that may threaten the nearby
community, Westates will advise local
public safety agencies. Westates will
also notify the federal authorities at
the National Response Center.

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Emergency Response at Westates UPDATED
EMERGENCIES REPORTED BY WESTATES
Date
November 10, 1994
April 17, 1995
February 20, 1996
October 5, 1998
Nature of
Spill:
An overflow of
waste waters that
were to be sent to
Joint Venture
An overflow of
waste waters that
were to be sent to
Joint Venture
Puncture of waste
water discharge
pipeline
Water spilled from
a truck after
delivering spent
carbon to Westates
Location:
On-site at Westates
On-site at Westates
On-site at
Westates
Just outside main
gate of Westates
Cause:
Power outage in
Parker area caused
pump to stop
working
Power outage in
Parker area caused
pump to stop
working
Contractor
punctured waste
water pipeline
while working on
natural gas lines
The truck driver
opened a valve on
the truck, releasing
wash-out waters
Injuries:
None
None
None
None
Westates'
Immediate
Response:
-Restart pump
-Remove affected
soils
-Test soils for
contamination
-Restart pump
-Remove affected
soils
-Test soils for
contamination
-Remove affected
soils
-Send soils off-site
for incineration
-Remove affected
soils
-Send soils off-site
for incineration
Westates'
Long Term
Reponse
Pump station was
bypassed after the
April 1995
occurence
Pump station was
bypassed with a
gravity flow system

Instituted a system
of checking each
truck before it
leaves Westates
REQUIREMENTS FOR REPORTING
EMERGENCIES
Westates must report to EPA
emergencies that occur at their
facility within 15 days of the
emergency. Westates has
reported four emergencies to
EPA since they began operating
in 1992. (See table above.)
Three of the emergencies were spills of waste waters
that were to be sent to the Colorado River Sewage
System Joint Venture. One spill was of water that came
into contact with spent carbon. According to Westates,
none of the spills resulted in harm to the community.
The information in this table (above) is taken from notifica-
tions which Westates sent to EPA, each within 15 days of
the emergency. These are the only emergencies Westates
has reported to EPA since Westates began operation in
1992. For more information on these emergencies, you
may contact EPA.
FOR INFORMATION IN ANOTHER
LANGUAGE
If you would like to receive materials about Westates in another
language, please contact Wenona Wilson at the toll free phone
number and address on the front of this fact sheet.
PARA INFORMACION EN ESPANOL
Westates es una empresa de tratamiento y almacenaje de residuos
peligrosos y esta ubicada cerca de Parker, Arizona. Si usted desea
recibir informacion en Espanol, por favor comuniquese con Wenona
Wilson al numero de telefono (800) - llamada gratuita - o a la
direccion al reverso de esta pagina.

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