Project

Ascon Landfill Site

Location Huntington Beach, CA Regulatory Jurisdiction DTSC

Largest LA Basin project where PNL represents the landfill owners in EIR preparation and negotiations pursuant to CEQA

PNL Role
Focusing on management of waste streams, not areas. Assisting the PRPs to identify and fill data gaps for EIR and Design Remedy negotiations.

Project Navigator, Ltd. is the Project Manager/Coordinator for the Ascon Landfill Site in Huntington Beach, California. Ascon is a 38-acre former landfill that is now a State Superfund site containing mostly oil exploration waste and construction debris. PNL manages all aspects of the project, including communications and negotiations between the site owners, potentially responsible parties, and the oversight agencies; manages consultant and contractor costs, tasks and schedule controls; maintains and drives the site’s closure strategy and coordinates interactions between the eight Responsible Parties (RPs), DTSC (the site’s lead oversight agency), as well as other regulators. PNL also manages the public affairs for the project, including conducting regular briefings and Site orientations with the City, including emergency responders, preparation and distribution of facts sheets and community notices, public meetings and open houses held in the community, hosting a project website to inform the community of public documents and activities, and a hotline during construction activities.

The final remedy for the site consists of removal of select waste to an offsite landfill facility, reconsolidation of remaining waste to the interior of the site, re-grading the site to provide suitable storm-water drainage gradients, and construction of a cap to cover remaining waste materials. Groundwater and landfill gas at the site have been assessed. Groundwater continues to be monitored, while design of the cap will incorporate a landfill gas collection and treatment system.

Preparations for the remedy, managed by Project Navigator, Ltd., have included remedial investigations for soils and groundwater, risk assessments, the feasibility study, the Remedial Action Plan, modifying the agency-approved remedy, construction contractor evaluation, selection and management of contractors, cost analyses, California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) oversight (including the DTSC-certified Environmental Impact Report), and management of the project budgets and long-term forecast.

PNL maintains a website containing information about the project at https://asconhb.com.

Technical Milestones

  • Groundwater being monitored through an interim program to be conducted through Remedial Action.
  • Draft Remedial Action Plan submitted to DTSC in September 2007 is still under review.
  • Environmental Impact Report process began late 2008.
  • Submitted Draft Initial Study/Mitigated Negative Declaration for Interim Removal Measure to DTSC in November 2008 to remove tars from onsite lagoons.
  • Interim Removal Measure Mitigated Negative Declaration was approved by DTSC in 2010, and fieldwork commenced in July 2010.
  • Interim Removal Measure completed in March 2011.

Stakeholder Relations

  • Frequent communication and coordination with Huntington Beach Fire Department and other City departments.
  • Public meetings and Open Houses held, briefing community on Emergency Action, Feasibility Study, and overall project status.