Cidra Ground Water Contamination

Overview

Four public drinking water supply wells in Cidra, Puerto Rico were shut down between 1996 and 2000 after chlorinated solvents were found in the water. The EPA began investigating in June 2002, sampling the closed wells and 20 other active and inactive wells nearby. The site was added to the National Priorities List, which identifies the most serious hazardous waste sites in the country, in July 2004. Two former industrial properties, the International Dry Cleaners and Ramallo Brothers Printing, were identified as sources of contamination.

The contaminants of concern include tetrachloroethylene (PCE), trichloroethylene (TCE), 1,1-dichloroethylene, cis-1,2-dichloroethylene, and chloroethene (vinyl chloride). These chemicals appear in groundwater, soil, and soil gas across the site. Under current conditions, health risks are within EPA's acceptable limits. But if people were to live or work on the site in the future, estimated cancer risks and non-cancer hazards would far exceed EPA's target levels. Those risks would come mainly from PCE in soil and groundwater through ingestion, skin contact, inhalation, and vapor moving into buildings. EPA has determined that human exposure is currently under control, but contaminated groundwater is still migrating and has not been stabilized.

EPA signed a cleanup decision document in September 2014. The selected remedy uses several methods, including soil vapor extraction, excavation, in-situ chemical treatment, a permeable reactive barrier, monitored natural attenuation, an engineered cap, and institutional controls. Cleanup targets soil at the former dry cleaner and printing properties, and groundwater beneath and downstream of the Ramallo property. EPA is actively implementing cleanup at the former International Dry Cleaners site and is arranging a fund-led remedial action for the remaining areas.

Remedial action started in September 2019, and final remedial action began in September 2023. Construction is estimated to finish between September and November 2028. Long-term monitoring and response actions are planned to follow construction. The site has not yet been removed from the National Priorities List.

Community members can attend public availability sessions when they are held for this site. No Community Advisory Group is currently in place. For questions, residents can contact the EPA's Caribbean Environmental Protection Division at (787) 977-5865.