The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced an agreement with Honeywell International Inc. to fund the construction of groundwater treatment facilities at the San Fernando Valley (Area 1) Superfund site in Los Angeles, California. The facilities will be located in the North Hollywood Operable Unit and are intended to address industrial groundwater contamination. This initiative will enable the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) to incorporate treated water into its drinking water supply.
“Today’s announcement marks major progress on the cleanup of groundwater in the San Fernando Valley,” said EPA Pacific Southwest Regional Administrator Martha Guzman. “This is a key step towards returning the aquifer to use as a drinking water source for the people of Los Angeles.”
The project is the result of extensive cooperation among LADWP, EPA, and Honeywell. These entities collaborated to resolve complex issues related to groundwater contamination management, ensuring that cleanup efforts could proceed while increasing Los Angeles' use of groundwater for safe drinking water. A separate settlement between LADWP and Honeywell in 2019 helped establish a coordinated long-term approach to addressing pollution in the San Fernando Basin.
Today's agreement also underscores efforts by LADWP and EPA to hold responsible parties accountable for historic hazardous material production that led to groundwater contamination in the San Fernando Basin. Honeywell's predecessors manufactured and tested aircraft parts and other industrial equipment starting in the 1940s at a facility known as the Former Bendix Site in North Hollywood. The EPA and the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board identified operations at several industrial sites, including the Former Bendix Site, as sources of groundwater contamination.
Under this agreement, contaminated groundwater will be extracted for treatment before being delivered to LADWP for inclusion in its drinking water system. This additional supply aims to meet the daily water needs of approximately 144,000 residents in Los Angeles.
