Governor Janet Napolitano announced that after several months of negotiations, ASARCO, LLC, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) & the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) reached a 3-way agreement for ASARCO to conduct environmental cleanup & risk assessments for residential yards in Hayden. The agreement further requires ASARCO to set aside $13.5 million to conduct soil removal in residential areas, to fund additional work as necessary, & to fully reimburse ADEQ & EPA for expenses incurred while overseeing ASARCO's activities.
Under terms of the agreement, ASARCO will sample all of the residential yards in the town of Hayden, complete a full risk assessment & perform any necessary cleanups. The agreement also requires ASARCO to sample residential yards in the town of Winkleman, although to date, no signs of environmental contamination have been detected outside of Hayden.
"This agreement is a win for the residents of Hayden & I am pleased the parties came together to get it done," said Governor Napolitano. "While some yards in Hayden definitely need clean up work, I was concerned that if the EPA were to designate the town of Hayden as a Superfund site, it would harm the town more than it would help. Committing ASARCO to pay for the cleanup, & to conduct it under close supervision, is a better solution."
Steve Owens, director of ADEQ added, "The environmental testing & cleanup to be performed under this agreement will be rigorous, thorough & monitored closely to ensure it is done right."
The agreement also means the cleanup will be funded with private money rather than taxpayer dollars.
Last September, the Governor asked the EPA to delay listing the Hayden Plant Site on the National Priorities (Superfund) List until March 31st, 2008, in order to give the parties time to work out an agreement for ASARCO to conduct & pay for the cleanup without a Superfund designation.
Earlier this year, ASARCO, EPA & AZDEQ reached a separate agreement to clean up 15 "high priority" yards in Hayden. Contractors with expertise in environmental cleanups are currently removing & replacing soil from these residential yards. As with the larger agreement announced April 15th, this work is being done using money set aside by ASARCO for this purpose.
"We take our environmental responsibility very seriously" said Jack Garrity, technical services manager for ASARCO. "ASARCO has been very committed to conducting this cleanup & we believe this agreement protects our community's economic future while also ensuring that our environment is clean & safe."
EPA has released initial study results showing that there is no immediate health threat from metals in Hayden soils. EPA also has confirmed that Hayden drinking water is not contaminated & that once the soil cleanup in residential yards is complete recontamination is unlikely.