Background:
In 1985 portions of the groundwater basin beneath the former El Toro Marine Corps Air Station and the central area of Irvine were found to contain trichloroethylene (TCE) which are aircraft cleaning solvents known as volatile organic compounds (VOCs).  These chemicals resulted from past disposal and waste management practices on the former base that was common before the development of stricter environmental regulations in the mid-1970’s.  A one-by-three mile plume of contamination now extends off the base (see map below).  The contamination is about 150 feet deep beneath the base and 300-1,000 feet deep in the community area. 

Irvine’s Drinking Water is Safe
First and foremost, drinking water in Irvine has been and remains absolutely safe. IRWD drinking water continues to be well within all state and federal water quality regulations. IRWD maintains a state-certified water quality laboratory that annually performs more than a quarter of a million tests on our water supply to ensure that this quality is monitored and maintained. The plume does not affect IRWD’s drinking water since IRWD’s main well field is still several miles from the affected area.

Cleaning up the Groundwater
IRWD, the Orange County Water District and the United States Department of the Navy have completed a joint project, the Irvine Desalter Project (IDP), designed to clean up the TCE plume.  The IDP began full operation in January 2007 and pumps water from the plume of contamination caused by the use of aircraft solvents on the former El Toro Marine Corps Air Station. Following treatment to remove the TCE, this water is used only for non-drinking purposes in IRWD’s extensive recycled water system. It will provide 1.3 billion gallons of clean water annually, enough to irrigate 1,300 acres of landscaping. It is projected that it will take 40 years to clean up the plume.

Learn more:

• IRWD and City of Irvine Letter to the Community (pdf format)
• Where does IRWD get it's water?
• IRWD Annual Water Quality Report
• Map of the TCE plume
• Irvine Desalter Project
• Irvine Desalter Project brochure (pdf format)
• The Navy Base Restoration Advisory Committee Meetings
• Department of Navy Fact Sheet (pdf format)
• Documents on file at Heritage Park Regional Library, 14361 Yale Avenue, Irvine, CA 92604, (949) 936-4040.

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