B.F. Goodrich

Description and History

The B.F. Goodrich Site includes a 160-Acre Area in Rialto, California where volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and perchlorate have contaminated soil and groundwater. The Site also includes areas of groundwater contamination downgradient of the 160-Acre Area. The 160-Acre Area is bounded by West Casa Grande Drive on the north, Locust Avenue on the east, Alder Avenue on the west, and an extension of Summit Avenue on the south.

Most or all of the Site is located in the Rialto-Colton Groundwater Basin in western San Bernardino County, California. The Basin is an important source of drinking water to residents and businesses in the cities of Rialto, Colton, and Fontana.

The 160-Acre Area was part of a larger area acquired by the United States Army in 1942 to develop an inspection, consolidation, and storage facility for rail cars transporting ordnance to the Port of Los Angeles. Since the United States sold the Rialto property in 1946, a portion of the property has been used by defense contractors, fireworks manufacturers, and other businesses that used perchlorate salts and/or solvents in their manufacturing processes or products. In 1956 and 1957, West Coast Loading Corporation manufactured and tested two products, photoflash flares and "ground-burst simulators," containing potassium perchlorate. From about 1957 to 1962, B.F. Goodrich Corporation conducted research, development, testing, and production of solid-fuel rocket propellant containing ammonium perchlorate, and used solvents in the manufacturing process. Since the 1960s, the 160-Acre Area has been used by a number of companies that manufactured or sold pyrotechnics, including Pyrotronics, Pyro Spectaculars, and American Promotional Events.

Contaminants and Risks

Who is Involved

In 2002, the Santa Ana Regional Water Quality Control Board (Water Board) began actively working with Potentially Responsible Parties (PRPs) and property owners to investigate soil and groundwater contamination at the Site and in surrounding areas. EPA began assisting the Water Board in 2002, providing technical, enforcement, and financial assistance including searches of historical records; interviews of former employees of suspected perchlorate users; issuing an administrative order to two PRPs to complete soil and groundwater testing in 2003, completing soil and groundwater testing that the PRPs refused to complete; computer modeling to evaluate the fate of a perchlorate spill; and the award of approximately $1.3M in grants to the water purveyors.

In 2008, after the Water Board's efforts were stalled by legal challenges, EPA increased its efforts at the Site (as described below). In September 2009, EPA added the Site to the Superfund National Priorities List.

Cleanup Results to Date

Potentially Responsible Parties

Potentially responsible parties (PRPs) refers to companies that are potentially responsible for generating, transporting, or disposing of the hazardous waste found at the site.

EPA has identified the following parties as PRPs at the site:

- Goodrich Corporation
- Emhart Industries (on behalf of West Coast Loading Corporation)
- Pyro Spectaculars Inc. (PSI)
- Ken Thompson Inc. (current property owner)
- Chung Ming Wong (current property owner)
- Pyrotronics, Inc. (“Pyrotronics”) and Harry Hescox

In February 2010, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a complaint on EPA’s behalf pursuant to CERCLA and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) seeking reimbursement of costs and performance of response actions by the PRPs. In February 2011, EPA issued "Special Notice" letters to PRPs at the site inviting the PRPs to participate in formal negotiations with EPA in an effort to reach a settlement to conduct or finance the cleanup identified in its September 2010 Record of Decision. When the special notice moratorium expired in May 2011, EPA had not received a "Good Faith Offer" to its Special Notice letters.

In 2012, EPA reached settlements with PSI, Emhart Industries, and other entities involved in litigation at the site. In 2013, EPA reached settlements with Goodrich and Ken Thompson Inc.

The settlement with PSI was lodged with the Court on October 10, 2012, open for public comment until November 26, 2012, and approved by the Court in March 2013. The settlement requires payment of $4.3 million to help fund the cleanup and partially reimburse EPA for money spent on investigation work at the Site. The PSI settlement includes the following entities: PSI; Astro Pyrotechnics (a defunct subsidiary of PSI); Trojan Fireworks; Thomas O. Peters and related trusts; and Stonehurst Site, LLC.

The settlement with Emhart Industries was available for public comment until January 31, 2013. The Emhart settlement, if approved by the Court, will require Emhart, the U.S. Dept. of Defense, and other settling parties to fund the design, construction, and operation of the groundwater wells, water treatment systems, and other equipment called for in EPA's 2010 cleanup plan for the Source Area Operable Unit. The cleanup work is estimated to cost $43 million over the next 30 years. The Emhart settlement includes the following entities: Emhart Industries, Inc., Black & Decker Inc, American Promotional Events, Inc., the Department of Defense, the Ensign-Bickford Company, Raytheon, Whittaker Corporation, Broco, Inc., and J. S. Brower & Associates, Inc. and related companies.

The settlement with Goodrich Corporation includes two agreements. The first agreement requires Goodrich, under an administrative consent order with EPA, to install additional groundwater monitoring wells and complete testing and engineering analyses as part of EPA's RI/FS process for the Mid-Basin and Soils Operable Units. See "Legal Documents" below for a copy of the consent order. EPA will use the results of the RI/FS to develop a cleanup plan for these areas. The second agreement is a judicial consent decree, which requires Goodrich, under EPA’s oversight, to design, build, and operate any cleanup facilities selected by the agency in the cleanup plan for the Mid-Basin and Soils Operable Units. The Consent Decree was available for public comment until May 1, 2013.

The Consent Decree with Ken Thompson Inc. was also available for public comment until May 1, 2013. The settlement requires payment of $2.8 million to help fund the cleanup and partially reimburse EPA for money spent on investigation work at the Site.

Community Involvement

Public Meetings: December 2, 2009 - EPA and the California Department of Public Health held a joint public meeting in Rialto, CA
USEPA Introduction to BF Goodrich Superfund | English | Spanish CDPH Public Health Assesment Presentation | English | Spanish

February 10, 2010 - EPA explained its proposed groundwater cleanup plan at a public meeting in Rialto, CA

October - November 2010 - EPA interviewed community members in the Rialto area to support development of a Community Involvement Plan.

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