Hunter

ORDER DENYING DEFENDANTS’ MOTION FOR PARTIAL SUMMARY JUDGMENT AND GRANTING GOVERNMENT’S MOTION FOR PARTIAL SUMMARY JUDGMENT

I.

Introduction

This case concerns the Casmalia Resources Hazardous Waste Management Facility, a former commercial hazardous waste treatment, storage and disposal facility that operated from 1973-1989 (“Cas-malia site”). The Casmalia site was 252 acres in size and contained over fifty surface impoundments, two waste treatment units, and several waste landfills for materials including pesticides, caustics, PCBs, and acids. During its time of operation the Casmalia site accepted in excess of 4 billion pounds of hazardous waste. In 1989, the State of California Regional Water Quality Control Board (“RWQCB”), after investigating whether the facility was causing groundwater contamination, ordered the Casmalia site to cease accepting waste. In 1992 the EPA took measures to stabilize the Casmalia site at a cost in excess of $13 million. Since that time the United States government has been taking steps to complete a permanent remediation of the Casmalia site; these activities are being conducted by the Casmalia Site Steering Committee.

The United States filed…