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February 4, 2008

The breeding sesaon for the endangered California clapper rail (Railus longirostris obsoletus) begins on February 1 and continues until August 31 each year. The clapper rail is a medium-sized bird that inhabits salt marshes of the San Francisco Bay. This once abundant bird has become endangered due to loss of salt marsh habitat, hunting, and predation by feral cats, red foxes and rats. The US Fish and Wildlife Service estimates that there are only around 1,000 clapper rails remaining in the San Francisco Bay.

Beginning February 5, 2008 a contractor will repave a 270-foot stretch of Lark Drive. The repaving is necessary to repair the section of roadway and remove sensors used for the Institute of Transporation Studies Heavy Vehicle Simulator studies no longer being conducted at the RFS. Work will include grinding and removal of the existing roadway and laying hot mix asphalt. No disturbance of soils under the existing asphalt and base rock will occur. Work is expected to be finished by Friday February 8, 2008.

On January 31, 2008, Facilities Management staff spent an hour and a half collecting debris that had washed and blown on to UC Berkeley Richmond Field Station property along the left bank (east side) of Meeker Slough. Most of the debris was light floatable material such as Styrofoam cups, plastic water bottles and tennis balls. The accumulation was more substantial than during most rainy years due to the January 4, 2008 storm with 50 MPH sustained on-shore winds and a large storm surge associated with a high tide. A volume of approximately 30 bags of waste was removed.

January 24, 2008

On January 16, 2008 the RFS Winter 2008 Town Hall meeting was held in the newly renovated B445 conference building. The EH&S powerpoint presentation describing the Remediation and Restoration Project history and current activities is availabe on the Publications page of this website.

January 11, 2008

In October 2007 the Department of Toxic Substances Control issued a letter presenting comments to the April 2, 2007 Draft Current Conditions Report for the Richmond Field Station (see October 25, 2007 news item). UC Berkeley's Draft Response to Comments is available on the Technical Documents page of this website.

Beginning on January 15, 2008 the RFS Facility Team will backfill the excavation pit of the former Forest Products Laboratory Wood Treatment Laboratory. The soil in this area was removed in October 2007 under a Department of Toxic Substances Control Time Critical Removal Action and shipped for off-site disposal. The clean backfill material is currently stored at the RFS between Buildings 149 and 128. DTSC has approved use of this soil for backfill. It is expected that it will take two days to complete the backfill activity. Dust control measures will be implemented during the backfill.

December 5, 2007

The State of California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) has issued the following work notice for site investigation activities at the Zeneca site:

WORK NOTICE FOR FORMER ZENECA/ FORMER STAUFFER CHEMICAL SITE, RICHMOND, CALIFORNIA (December 5, 2007)

November 27, 2007

Beginning Wednesday morning, November 28, 2007, trucks will be loaded with soils currently stored in the stockpile area of the RFS Remediation and Restoration Project (between buildings 112 and 128) for off-site disposal at a State approved landfill. These stockpiled soils originated from the Building 445 renovation and Jay Way repaving projects. The soils have been tested for chemicals of concern and are non-hazardous. Dust control measures will be implemented during loading activities. It is expected that the work will take two days to complete.

November 19, 2007

On July 15, 2007, the state Department of Public Health (DPH) released a draft "Public Health Assessment" (PHA) regarding the University's Richmond Field Station (RFS). The draft PHA evaluates existing RFS environmental data, makes conservative assumptions regarding possible exposures to contaminants found at the site, estimates potential health impacts, and evaluates health concerns raised by some RFS employees.

As part of the ongoing efforts to remove legacy contamination from the Richmond Field Station, a small area of soil in the vicinity of the former Forest Products Laboratory Wood Treatment Laboratory (WTL) was excavated for off-site disposal in early October 2007. Work completed under the Time Critical Removal Action (TCRA) is described in a public notice from the State of California Department of Toxic Substances Control.

October 25, 2007

The State of California Department of Toxic Substances Control has issued a letter presenting comments on the April 5, 2007 Draft Current Conditions Report (CCR) for the Richmond Field Station. The October 18, 2007 letter is available on the Publications page.

October 4, 2007

Excavation of soils at former Forest Products Laboratory Wood Treatment Laboratory (WTL), performed under a clean-up plan approved by the State of California Department of Toxic Substances Control (see September 20, 2007 new story), was completed on October 4, 2007. Samples will be taken to determine if any additional excavation is needed. If no additional digging is needed, the excavation will be backfilled with clean soil.

September 20, 2007

As part of the ongoing efforts to remove legacy contamination from the Richmond Field Station, a small area of soil in the vicinity of the former Forest Products Laboratory Wood Treatment Laboratory (WTL) will be excavated for off-site disposal beginning on October 1, 2007. A public notice from the State of California Department of Toxic Substances Control, the regulatory agency that has approved this action. This notice describes the work that will occur in this area.

September 10, 2007

On September 5, 2007, the State of California Department of Public Health convened a meeting at the Richmond Field Station to present the findings of and answer questions about the draft Public Health Assessment of the Richmond Field Station (see August 17, 2007 news item). The following is a message from Mark Freiberg , the Director of the campus Office of Environment, Health & Safety, to the RFS Community regarding the meeting.

August 17, 2007

On July 15, 2007, the state Department of Public Health (DPH) released a draft "Public Health Assessment" (PHA) regarding the University's Richmond Field Station (RFS). The draft PHA evaluates existing RFS environmental data, makes conservative assumptions regarding possible exposures to contaminants found at the site, estimates potential health impacts, and evaluates health concerns raised by some RFS employees.

July 16, 2007

At the July 12, 2007 Richmond Southeast Shoreline Area Community Advisory Group meeting the University presented a letter regarding the June 29, 2007 Summary of Violations letter issued by the Department of Toxics Substances Control (see July 3, 2007 news item).

July 3, 2007

In a letter dated June 29, 2007, the University of California, Berkeley, was notified by the California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC), a branch of the California Environmental Protection Agency (Cal EPA), of allegations that it acted improperly by performing remediation work at its Richmond Field Station without hazardous waste permits or authorization from the DTSC.

June 18, 2007

May 5, 2007

The Richmond Southeast Shoreline Area Community Advisory Group (CAG) meets the second Thursday of each month from , 6:30- 9:00 p.m. Unless otherwise noted, meetings are held at the Richmond Convention Center Bermuda Room (address below). The California Department of Toxics Substances Control has scheduled the 2007 meetings of the Community Advisory Group for the following dates:

May 10, 2007- Closed to the public.

April 5, 2007

The Draft Current Conditions Report (CCR) for the Richmond Field Station is now available. This report, required by the Department of Toxic Substances Contol (DTSC) Site Investigation and Remediation Order, provides a comprehensive summary of current conditions at the RFS.