The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Los Angeles County have entered into a lease agreement, effective February 7, 2025, for a new staging area at Charles S. Farnsworth Park in Altadena, California. This development is part of the EPA's response to the extensive wildfire hazardous waste cleanup following recent catastrophic fires in Los Angeles County.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has tasked the EPA with assessing, removing, and safely disposing of hazardous materials from burned areas. Temporary staging areas are essential for consolidating and repackaging these materials before they are transported to disposal facilities.
Without such staging areas, the EPA would be unable to collect hazardous materials effectively. This collection is crucial for residents affected by the Eaton fire to begin their recovery process. Securing additional staging areas is necessary for the EPA to meet its timeline for completing Phase 1 of household hazardous waste removal operations.
"EPA is committed to safely removing hazardous materials from Eaton Fire-impacted properties," stated Tara Fitzgerald, EPA Pacific Southwest Incident Commander for the Los Angeles Wildfires Emergency Response. "A new staging area in Altadena will allow EPA to accelerate our cleanup operations and help residents continue moving through the recovery process."
To ensure public safety and environmental protection, significant safety measures are being implemented at these temporary sites. The EPA is installing fencing and establishing buffer zones around the staging area. The site does not include historical features like the Historic District or Davies Building.
Other safety measures across all staging areas involve pre-sampling conditions, lining processing areas with protective barriers, continuous air monitoring, dust control measures through water spraying, safe transportation of materials following Department of Transportation standards, and daily packaging and removal of waste without ground contact.
Once Phase 1 concludes, further testing will confirm no negative environmental impact from these activities.
For photos of EPA crews working on these projects and more information about their operations, visit epa.gov/california-wildfires. Updates on this initiative will be regularly provided as work progresses.
Further details can also be found on the official Los Angeles County website dedicated to recovery efforts and through various social media platforms associated with the EPA’s Pacific Southwest Region.
