California Gov. Gavin Newsom\u2019s disaster chief quietly retired in late December amid criticism over the state\u2019s indecisive stance on whether soil testing was necessary to protect survivors of the Eaton and Palisades fires.<\/p>\n
One year ago, Nancy Ward, then the director of the California Governor\u2019s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES), petitioned the Federal Emergency Management Agency to spearhead the cleanup of toxic ash and fire debris cloaking more than 12,000 homes across Los Angeles County. <\/p>\n
Ward\u2019s decision ensured the federal government would assume the bulk of disaster costs, but it came with a major trade off. FEMA was unwilling to pay for soil sampling to confirm these homes weren\u2019t still heavily contaminated with toxic substances after the cleanup \u2014 testing that California state agencies have typically done following similar fires in the past.<\/p>\n
Following intense backlash<\/a> from fire survivors and California lawmakers, Ward pleaded with FEMA to reconsider its soil-testing stance, writing in a Feb. 19 letter that it is \u201ccritical to protect public health\u201d and \u201censure that survivors can safely return to their homes.\u201d Her request was denied<\/a>.<\/p>\n However, in October, Cal OES \u2014 under Ward\u2019s leadership \u2014 privately considered discontinuing state funding for soil testing in the aftermath of future wildfires, according to a confidential, internal draft memo obtained by the Los Angeles Times. <\/p>\n The Times requested an interview with Ward, and sent questions to her office asking about her initial decision to forgo soil testing and for clarity on the future of state\u2019s fire recovery policy. Ward declined the request; The Times later published an article on Dec. 29 about allegations that federal contractors illegally dumped toxic ash and misused contaminated soil in breach of state policy. <\/p>\n Ward, who served as Cal OES director for three years, retired on Dec. 30; her deputy director, Christina Curry, stepped into the role as the interim chief. Ward also did not respond to several requests for comment for this article.<\/p>\n Ward was the first woman to serve as Cal OES director. She had also previously served as a FEMA regional administrator, overseeing federal disaster response in the Southwest and Pacific Islands from 2006 to 2014.<\/p>\n A Cal OES spokesperson said Ward\u2019s retirement had been planned well in advance. <\/p>\n \u201cDirector Nancy Ward has been a steady hand and a compassionate leader through some of California\u2019s largest disasters,\u201d the spokesperson said. \u201cHer decades of service have made our state stronger, safer, and more resilient. The Governor is deeply grateful for her dedication and wishes her the very best in retirement.\u201d<\/p>\n The internal memo obtained by The Times was written by Ward\u2019s assistant director, and titled: \u201cShould the state continue to pay for soil testing as part of Private Property Debris Removal (PPDR) programs?\u202f\u201d <\/p>\n It laid out three possible answers: The state could keep funding soil testing after future wildfires; the state could defer soil testing decisions to the affected counties with the possibility of reimbursing them; or the state could stop paying for soil testing entirely. <\/p>\n A Cal OES spokesperson said the memo was only a draft and did not represent a policy change. \u201cThe state\u2019s position on soil testing remains unchanged,\u201d the spokesperson said. \u201cCalifornia is committed to advocating for the safe, timely removal of wildfire debris. Protecting the public health and well-being of impacted communities remains the state\u2019s foremost priority.\u201d <\/p>\n In response to The Times\u2019 reporting, some state and local officials denounced Cal OES\u2019 decision to privately contemplate drastic changes to the state\u2019s fire recovery procedures.<\/p>\n \u201cOur job as public officials is to keep our communities safe and healthy,\u201d state Sen. Ben Allen (D-Pacific Palisades) said in a statement Friday. \u201cThis is especially true for disaster survivors who need to know the home and community they are returning to are safe. Any consideration of moving away from soil testing is deeply out of line and out of touch with these basic needs. This policy will be top of mind for me as the Senate eventually considers a vote to approve the next Cal OES Director nominee.\u201d<\/p>\n Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger, whose district includes Altadena, was angered that state officials deliberated handing off responsibility for soil testing to fire-affected counties.<\/p>\n \u201cThe notion that the State could simply reimburse Los Angeles County for conducting soil testing and remediation in the Eaton fire area was never a feasible option,\u201d Barger said. \u201cWhile that approach may have been discussed internally, it fails to reflect the serious fiscal constraints our County is facing.<\/p>\n \u201cAsking our County to front the cost of soil testing and remediation with the promise of later reimbursement would have placed an unacceptable burden on taxpayers and threatened essential public services.\u201d<\/p>\n Soil testing is intended to prevent exposures to toxic metals, such as brain-damaging lead or cancer-causing arsenic. Since 2007, comprehensive soil testing has been conducted after 64 wildfire cleanups in California, according to the memo. When soil contamination still exceeded state benchmarks after initial cleanup, the state sent cleanup workers to remove more dirt and then retest the properties.<\/p>\n This approach, the internal OES memo said, was critical in identifying harmful substances that \u201cpose exposure hazards via ingestion, inhalation of dust, or through garden\/food production.\u201d Soil testing \u201chelps ensure the safety\u201d of children, seniors, pregnant women and people with health issues who are \u201cmore vulnerable to soilborne toxins.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe State has a long precedent of conducting or paying for soil testing,\u201d the Cal OES assistant director wrote in the memo.\u202f \u201cPivoting from this would be a significant policy change.\u201d<\/p>\n The memo cites a report from CalRecycle, the agency that has historically carried out state-led fire cleanups, that stresses the importance of this current practice to public health. <\/p>\n \u201cSoil contamination after a wildfire is an invisible threat,\u201d a CalRecycle official wrote. \u201cIf not properly cleaned and remediated in a methodical way, property owners may encounter additional hurdles during the rebuilding process and suffer additional trauma.\u201d <\/p>\n \u201cSoil sampling,\u201d the official adds, \u201cis the metric by which CalRecycle demonstrates that debris removal operations have successfully remediated the post-disaster threat to public health and the environment.\u201d<\/p>\n However, such soil testing and additional cleanup prolongs cleanup and can make it more expensive. The memo cites cost estimates from CalRecycle which show that soil testing and additional cleanup work usually costs some $4,000 to $6,000 per parcel, representing 3% to 6% of overall debris removal costs. <\/p>\n The state cost projections align with those made by independent environmental experts. Andrew Whelton, a Purdue University professor who researches natural disasters, estimated that soil testing and further remediation for the Eaton and Palisades fire would cost between $40 million to $70 million. <\/p>\n All told, the CalRecycle report states the usual soil-testing process has been a \u201crelatively low-cost step\u201d to safeguard public health. <\/p>\n Further, although soil testing may add some cost, when it\u2019s taken as a proactive measure, it can save money down the road. <\/p>\n Forgoing soil testing and evidence-backed remediation can generate uncertainty about toxic contamination, which in turn could lower the value of homes in Altadena and Pacific Palisades, Whelton said. What\u2019s more, the property owner may be liable for soil contamination if they fail to disclose environmental risks when selling or leasing. <\/p>\n The internal CalOES memo alludes to this give and take: \u201cFunds saved initially by skipping testing may be outweighed by later unseen costs, for example, reinvesting in remediation, addressing community complaints, litigation, or cleanup failure.\u201d<\/p>\n The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has fielded over 1,100 complaints filed by property owners<\/a> affected by the Eaton and Palisades fires \u2014 more than 20% of which were related to the quality of work. According to internal reports obtained by The Times, federal cleanup repeatedly deviated from cleanup protocols, likely spreading contamination<\/a> in the process. <\/p>\n Since then, FEMA officials have backed down from their hard-line stance against paying for post-fire soil testing in California in an attempt to shore up public confidence in the federal cleanup.<\/p>\n The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced<\/a> this week that FEMA will conduct a limited lead-testing program<\/a> in the Eaton fire burn scar intended to \u201cconfirm the effectiveness of cleanup methods,\u201d according to an EPA spokesperson. The initiative has already come under the scrutiny of environmental experts who say it lacks the rigor of California\u2019s soil testing regimen.<\/p>\n It remains unclear if California will continue to implement soil-testing safeguards that made the state a national leader in fire recovery. Though state officials say these will remain unchanged, there is no legal mandate to follow these procedures. <\/p>\n The internal CalOES memo circulated under Ward\u2019s leadership has only added to the cloud of uncertainty.<\/p>\n One thing is clear: It\u2019s a moot point for survivors of the Eaton and Palisades fire. <\/p>\n As state and federal officials debated the value of soil testing, most Altadena and Pacific Palisades residents have been left to investigate the extent of environmental fallout on their own.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"California Gov. 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