Quemetco battery recycler in City of Industry to pay $2.3M fine, fix problems

A lead smelter near Hacienda Heights has settled a lawsuit brought by state environmental agencies and California Attorney General Rob Bonta that involved 29 violations of hazardous waste handling and excessive toxic air emissions.

The Wet Electrostatic Precipitator , the device Quemetco uses to reduce metallic particulate emissions, is pictured at their City of Industry facility. Contractors from the Department of Toxic Substances Control conduct testing of soil for lead and other chemicals around the Quemetco, Inc. lead-acid battery recycling facility at 720 S. Seventh Avenue in the City of Industry May 31, 2016.

Arsenic is a known human carcinogen and is emitted from the lead smelter at the plant as part of the process in breaking down lead acid batteries into recyclable components. It is linked to skin, bladder, liver and lung cancers. Low levels of lead can damage a child’s nervous system, causing learning disabilities and behavioral problems. Lead has also caused tumors in laboratory animals and is listed as a probable carcinogen, according to DTSC.

“Under DTSC’s oversight, Quemetco will make facility improvements that better protect its neighbors and the environment and will pay for programs that benefit the entire community,” wrote DTSC Director Dr. Meredith Williams in a prepared statement. With a functioning system that detects leaks of arsenic, lead or any other potentially harmful chemical agents, less environmental damage will occur and residents living nearby will have less exposure.

The settlement does not affect the permit applications Quemetco has with the DTSC, which Leslie-Gassaway called a separate process that may be decided in February. Quemetco wants a permit extension. It has also asked Southern California AQMD for a permit to expand operations. Neither request has been decided.

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