EPA to test soil at 100 properties in Eaton Fire burn scar

Since losing her home in the Eaton Fire, Carolina Chacon has been concerned about rebuilding on potentially contaminated soil. 

"After the first big rain storm in October, we developed a sinkhole under where our garage was," she said. "It was clear there was ash and fire debris in there."

She said she discovered the debris after the Army Corps of Engineers cleared the top six inches of soil off her property. 

"It becomes more and more clear," Chacon said. "That's a piece of pottery from our yard. That's a brick from our front wall."

Chacon has mixed feelings about the Environmental Protection Agency's announcement to conduct soil lead testing at 100 properties in the Eaton Fire burn scar. 

"I don't think it's sufficient, but it's a step in the right direction," Chacon said. 

Andrew Whelton, an engineering professor at Purdue University, briefed Los Angeles County officials about soil testing after other major disasters in California. He criticized the decision to test only for lead and to collect samples from only 100 of the roughly 5,600 lots that burned. 

"If you're only looking for lead, then you're not going to be able to say that my soil is safe," Whelton said. 

Following a meeting on the soil testing protocol, Whelton noted that officials appeared to misunderstand the need to test for 16 additional hazardous metals.

"This wasn't necessarily determining if people have safe properties to rebuild or if there are current health hazards due to the soil," Whelton said. "It's an agency coming in to look at lead only for a very small, unrepresentative number of homes. Using methods that are not necessarily designed to determine if the properties are safe, like California has used for the last 15 years."

Whelton added that the EPA proposed taking 30 soil samples from different locations on each of the 100 properties to create soil composites for testing. 

"When you mix 30 samples together, generally, you can lower the amount of contamination that you actually see," Whelton said. 

The EPA told CBS LA it would not comment on the soil testing plan until Tuesday. 

Supervisor Kathryn Barger's office, which represents the Eaton Fire burn scar communities, said she has been briefed by the EPA on the soil testing efforts.

"She supports efforts that provide wildfire survivors with clear science-based information about potential environmental impacts and believes education and transparency are critical as residents continue their recovery," Barger's office wrote. "Any testing that helps homeowners better understand potential risks and make informed decisions is an important part of that process."

Potential soil contamination has concerned many in the Eaton Fire burn scar, including Altadena and Pasadena. After a preliminary study found higher-than-expected levels of lead and other heavy metals in wildfire-affected communities, LA County approved a $3 million program to provide free soil testing for residents.

Further testing by the Pasadena Public Health Department found that lead levels in the city were below the California Department of Toxic Substances Control guideline of 80 parts per million and well below the Environmental Protection Agency's threshold of 200 ppm. Additionally, heavy metal test results were below state and federal limits.