PROTECO operated as a hazardous waste landfill in Peñuelas, Puerto Rico from 1975 through 1999. The facility went through partial closure activities in the 1990s but was abandoned in 2009 without completing required maintenance or monitoring. EPA added the site to the National Priorities List (NPL), the federal list of the most serious contaminated sites, in May 2019. That designation triggers a structured Superfund cleanup process.
The site's groundwater contains mercury and several organic solvents. Those solvents include tetrachloroethylene (PCE), trichloroethylene (TCE), and dichloroethylene compounds. Uncontained waste sources and contaminated groundwater pose a threat to local water supplies. More than 17,000 people rely on private and public supply wells that could be affected.
EPA began a Remedial Investigation (RI) on September 30, 2020. The agency is treating the entire site as one unit and running a combined Remedial Investigation and Feasibility Study (RI/FS). The RI gathers detailed data about contamination. The Feasibility Study (FS) will then evaluate possible cleanup approaches. No cleanup remedy has been selected yet, and physical construction has not started. EPA has also determined that human exposure and groundwater migration status are uncertain due to insufficient data at this stage.
The site has also been known under several other names, including Carbareon Inc., Proteccion Tecnica Ecologica, Resources Management Inc., and Servicios Carbareon. Public documents and technical reports related to the site are available through EPA's Superfund records system. Physical records can be reviewed at EPA's New York office at 290 Broadway, 18th Floor, New York, New York 10007.
Community members with questions can contact the EPA's Community Involvement Coordinator or Remedial Project Manager.
