W.R. Grace/Diversified Insulation, 2502 S. Garnsey Street, Santa Ana, California
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EPA
Region		 Location of facility Type of facility Amount
of ore
received
(in tons)		 Did
EPA
visit
the
site?		 Were
samples
taken?		 Results of
evaluation
9 2502 S. Garnsey Street, Santa Ana, California Former exfoliation facility 453,704 Yes-April 4, 2000 Yes According to an EPA database compiled from W.R. Grace shipping invoices, 453,704 tons of vermiculite ore from the Libby mine were shipped to this site between December 1971 and August 1988. According to the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry’s (ATSDR) health consultation for this site, W.R. Grace had processed vermiculite at this site from 1972 until 1993. At the time of EPA's visit, W.R. Grace was still operating at the site but did not process vermiculite ore. The site covered approximately 4 acres, and the immediate surroundings were mainly light industrial and commercial, with an elementary school, built in the 1950s, located approximately 200 yards north of the site. Residential development was present in all directions within 1 mile of the site. This facility had produced expanded vermiculite and vermiculite-containing products such as Monokote, a fireproofing spray. The facility also used expanded vermiculite to produce other products, such as attic insulation, soil mix, soil conditioner, and concrete aggregate. In 1990, W.R. Grace stopped using vermiculite in the Monokote it produced at this site and began using polystyrene and gypsum instead. According to several people interviewed by EPA who had worked at this facility in the 1970s and 1980s, the vermiculite was delivered to the facility in covered rail cars. Conveyors were used to move the vermiculite from the rail cars to the silos and then to the furnaces where the vermiculite was expanded to its final form. The expanded vermiculite was separated from the waste rock (stoner rock) and bagged. According to the employees, the waste rock was either sent to Phoenix, Arizona, to be encapsulated; back to the Libby mine via railcar; or to a hazardous waste facility in Kettleman City, California. In February 2001, EPA collected soil, dust, and air samples at this site. Of the 11 soil samples that were collected from unpaved portions of the site, 5 did not contain detectable levels of asbestos while the remaining 6 samples each contained less than 1-percent asbestos. Polarized light microscopy (PLM) was used to analyze the soil samples. Of the three dust samples that were collected, 2 did not contain detectable levels of asbestos and 1 contained an estimated concentration of 2,552 asbestos structures per square centimeter of wiped surface (10,000 structures per square centimeter is the level at which a cleanup action may be needed). None of the 4 air samples collected had detectable levels of asbestos. The dust and air samples were analyzed using transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Since the levels of asbestos in all samples collected were below levels that would trigger a cleanup action, EPA determined that no further action was needed. The ATSDR's health consultation report for this site can be found at ATSDR.

GAO-09-6R