For Immediate Release	Contact:	Nicole Capretz
May 21, 2004		619-236-6616

Councilmember Frye Launches Investigation of Closed Mission Bay Landfill

SAN DIEGO, CA... On Friday, May 21, 2004, City of San Diego Councilmember Donna Frye hosted a press conference in the South Shores Parking Lot, along SeaWorld Drive, to launch the beginning of an environmental assessment of the closed 115-acre Mission Bay landfill located in the vicinity of Sea World Drive. Through the collaborative work of the City of San Diego Environmental Services Department and the Mission Bay Landfill Technical Advisory Committee (TAC), the City hired a consultant, SCS Engineers, through a consultant selection process.

SCS Engineers will perform a thorough environmental assessment that will more clearly define the extent of the landfill's historical boundaries, analyze the levels of potential environmental contaminants beneath the surface of the old landfill, and evaluate the effects that any contaminants might have on the health and safety of the area.

"City staff and community members have worked together during the past two years to pursue this environmental assessment," said Councilmember Donna Frye. "We are finally going to determine definitively if the site has human and/or ecological risks."

During its operation from 1952 to 1959, the Mission Bay landfill operated as municipal landfill and accepted both municipal and industrial wastes. From 1959 to 1969, the property received hydraulic fill from the dredging of Mission Bay, with additional hydraulic fill in 1980. The landfill also accepted municipal solid waste and liquid waste from industrial sources, which was legal and common practice at the time. Today, under current federal regulations, some of these industrial wastes are classified as hazardous.

Nearly 20 years ago, preliminary studies of the landfill conducted by federal and state officials concluded that the landfill did not pose a threat to public health or to the nearby Mission Bay environment. Since then, new scientific methods have been developed which provide more accurate data and will be used in the upcoming environmental assessment of the closed landfill.

The assessment will include several phases such as walking the site while performing geophysical surveys, and using a truck mounted hydraulic ram to obtain soil, gas, and water samples for laboratory analysis. The final site assessment report will provide the needed information to evaluate the current conditions and what future remediation alternatives, if any, are most appropriate for the site.

"It has been both a privilege and an important responsibility for me to work with Councilwoman Frye and the TAC Committee over the past 18 months," said Dr. Jeoffry Gordon, TAC member. "This process has harmonized the interests and knowledge of government, community activists, technical experts, recreational citizens, and environmental groups to produce a dependably independent, objective and valid scientific environmental assessment of the Mission Bay Landfill site which can be depended upon to direct the safe future use of this area."

The Mission Bay landfill TAC was created in August 2002 to oversee the investigation of the closed Mission Bay landfill. The TAC is chaired by Councilmember Donna Frye, and consists of community members, regulatory agency staff and City employees. The consultant, SCS Engineers, is a nationally recognized expert in the solid waste industry. SCS has performed an extensive amount of historical research on the Mission Bay landfill site in order to prepare the Site Assessment Plan. A copy of the Site Assessment Plan is available for public review at the City of San Diego's Environmental Services Department Library located at 9601 Ridgehaven Court.

For details about the Mission Bay landfill site assessment, please call Steven Fontana, Deputy Director of Refuse Disposal, at (858) 492-5077. Also, further information is available at the Council District 6 website.

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