CASTAIC : County Faces $770,000 Bill for Toxic Testing

The continued testing of soil and water at an abandoned landfill on the grounds of the Peter J. Pitchess Honor Rancho near Castaic, believed to contain toxic chemicals from illicit drug labs seized in the 1970s, will cost financially strapped Los Angeles County another $770,000.

The county already has spent about $120,000 to pump and test well water near the jail. So far, those tests have turned up no toxic contamination, said Sharon Bunn, director of facilities planning for the Sheriff’s Department. The second phase, which was approved Tuesday, will include deep soil and water testing and initial cleanup plans.

Traces of ethyl ether, a chemical used in the production of the drug PCP, first turned up in September, 1991, in wells dug to monitor ground water near the jail’s garbage dump.