[CPEO-MEF] Hamilton FIeld MTBE impacts upscale subdivision

[Lenny Siegel <lsiegel@cpeo.org>]

>From the Sunday, February 25, 2001 San Francisco Chronicle

"Developers of a Marin subdivision are offering upscale homes to
prospective buyers with a surprising catch: Don't plant any fruit trees
here. 

"And contractors would be well-advised to wear haz-mat boots and
coveralls when digging a hole in the backyard for a pool. 

"In the groundwater beneath the partially completed Hamilton Meadows
sits a toxic plume of MTBE, a suspected carcinogen that does not break
down easily in the environment. First detected five years ago, the plume
migrated to the site from a Navy gas station's leaking underground
storage tanks. 

"Developers of the subdivision -- which will include 235 spacious,
executive-style homes being offered for sale at prices of $579,000 to
$640,000 -- insist that the land is safe for families. 

"And contamination of groundwater at the Novato development, located at
the site of the decommissioned Hamilton Field, has apparently not
discouraged home buyers...."

For the entire article, see

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2001/02/25/MN110889.DTL
-- 


Lenny Siegel
Director, Center for Public Environmental Oversight
c/o PSC, 222B View St., Mountain View, CA 94041
Voice: 650/961-8918 or 650/969-1545
Fax: 650/968-1126
lsiegel@cpeo.org
http://www.cpeo.org

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