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U.S. EPA orders Burbank plating shop to sample soil for chromium, cyanide contamination

Release Date: 12/20/2004
Contact Information: Francisco Arcaute, U.S. EPA, (213) 244-1815

Firm faces daily fines of $ 5,500 per day

SAN FRANCISCO -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today ordered All Metals Processing, a plating shop located in Burbank, Calif., to sample the soil surrounding its facility for possible chromium and cyanide contamination, for potential violations of federal hazardous waste law.

Failure to comply with this request could result in fines of $ 5,500 per day.

All Metals Processing Co., is located at 264 W. Spazier Ave., in Burbank. The firm specializes in cadmium, copper, nickel, zinc, black-oxide and gold plating of parts.

"Because of the potential for exposure to surrounding communities, the EPA takes any potential releases very seriously," said Jeff Scott, director of the Waste Management Division for the EPA's San Francisco office.

During a Sept. 28 inspection at All Metals Processing Co., the EPA discovered that hazardous waste was seeping though the inside wall onto the ground outside the facility within 10 feet of the stormwater canal.

The EPA has required All Metals Processing to test and analyze the soil between the outside wall and the canal for chromium, nickel and cyanide. If traces of these chemicals are discovered, All Metals Processing will have to remove the contaminated soil.

Chromium is a known human carcinogen. Health effects from exposure to chromium can include kidney and liver damage. Because cadmium accumulates in the kidneys, exposure to large amounts of cadmium can cause kidney failure. Cyanide can exist in liquid, gas or powdered form. Exposure to cyanide can make people suddenly lose consciousness or cause death.