The landfill was used for several decades to dispose of radioactive and hazardous wastes generated by the laboratories of the University of Arizona, Northern Arizona University, Arizona State University and the Tucson Veterans Hospital. 

       The contaminants were detected in 1997 and 1998 according to recently released water quality reports from the Arizona Water Company, and a 1998 water quality report from the Lago del Oro water company. 

       The detected contaminants do not occur in nature.

       The total amount and types of the toxic chemical wastes disposed of at Page-Trowbridge is unknown because records of disposals were not kept until 1978. However, a review of the records kept since 1978 show that the contaminants of the type found in the Oracle and SaddleBrooke drinking water had been previously buried at Page-Trowbridge.  These same records indicate that the site may hold over two million pounds of toxic chemical waste. 

       While the contaminants were detected at levels below the EPA limit set for safe drinking water, the mere presence of the contaminants indicates that a decades old radioactive/toxic waste landfill may be leaking into groundwater used by several local communities. 

       Thus far, the contaminants detected in the Oracle and SaddleBrooke drinking water include: dichloromethane, ethylbenzene, xylenes, and bromoform.

Dichloromethane

       Arizona Water Company pumps groundwater from the same aquifer that runs under the Page-Trowbridge landfill to supply Oracle residents with their drinking water. Arizona Water Company is a corporation that supplies water services to several communities throughout Arizona. 

       Water quality reports from the Arizona Water Company show that the dichloromethane  (also called methylene chloride) was found in the Oracle water supply in 1997.  A review of these reports indicates that dichloromethane has not been tested for since 1997.

       Dichloromethane is a volatile organic compound (VOC) that can cause cancer. 

       Other potential health effects of dichloromethane include damage to the nervous system and blood as well as liver damage.

       The amount of dichloromethane detected was 0.6 parts per billion (ppb). The Maximum Contaminant Level for dichloromethane set by the EPA is 5 ppb.

Any Exposure Potentially Dangerous

       The EPA has Maximum Contamination Level Goals, called MCLG's for each hazardous compound that they regulate.  The EPA sets the MCLG based on the amount of a contaminant that can be consumed without health risks. 

       The MCLG for dichloromethane is zero, which means that the EPA considers any exposure to dichloromethane potentially dangerous to health.

       Web Parton, an Oracle resident who researches issues related to the Page-Trowbridge landfill, explained that showering in water contaminated with dichloromethane can result in high levels of exposure to the contaminant, "dichloromethane, like other volatile organic compounds evaporate in a shower spray and as you shower, you breathe the contaminant into your lungs," Parton said.

       Oracle resident Cliff Russell mentioned another danger of using water contaminated with VOC's in evaporative coolers, "When water containing a volatile organic compound like dichloromethane is used in an evaporative cooler, the compounds evaporate from the water and are vented into the air in the homes.  People in the house breathe the contaminant day in and day out."

       Russell owned and operated a construction company that specialized in toxic waste containment prior to retiring to Oracle.

Earlier Detections Discounted

       The University of Arizona owns the Page-Trowbridge landfill and is responsible for periodically monitoring the groundwater for contamination by the landfill. 

       The U of A maintains four monitoring wells spaced hundreds of feet apart around the Page-Trowbridge radioactive/toxic waste landfill. Water from these wells is periodically sampled to determine if the hazardous wastes buried at the landfill have begun to infiltrate the groundwater. 

       Earlier detection of dichloromethane and other contaminants at the Page Trowbridge monitoring wells have been dismissed by the U of A as errors made by the independent laboratories that analyzed the water sampled from the wells.

       In spite of claiming that the detection of dichloromethane was the result of lab errors, in 1992 the U of A or the laboratory used to test samples from Page-Trowbridge, raised their reporting limits for dichloromethane by a factor of 5, from 2.0 ppb to 10.0 ppb. 

       Raising the reporting limit enabled the University to avoid listing the amount of of dichloromethane detected in their their to the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ), and instead merely indicate that the contaminant was not detected at the Practical Quantitation Limit (PQL).

Early Warning Signal

       According to ADEQ, dichloromethane is one of the more mobile of the organic solvents and could possibly be the first to impact groundwater, in effect giving an early warning signal that other contaminants could be on the way.

       Oracle Resident Cliff Russell explained why dichloromethane provides an early indication of groundwater contamination, "Dichloromethane is heavier than water and does not dissolve in water, so it tends to move ahead of other contaminants in the aquifer," Russell said.

Possible Source of Dichloromethane 

       Even though a well supplying residents of Oracle with their drinking water is a little over three miles from the Page-Trowbridge landfill, the water quality reports from the Arizona Water Company claim that the likely source of the dichloromethane found in the Oracle water is "discharge from pharmaceutical and chemical factories". 

       There has never been pharmaceutical or chemical factories located anywhere near the aquifer that supplies SaddleBrooke & Oracle with drinking water. 

       The EPA fact sheet on dichloromethane lists photographic supplies as one of the primary sources of the contaminant. 

Ethylbenzene

       In 1998, a year after dichloromethane was found in the Oracle water supply, the Lago del Oro Water Company detected ethylbenzene in the SaddleBrooke water supply. 

       The Lago del Oro Water Company pumps groundwater from the same aquifer that runs Page-Trowbridge landfill to supply SaddleBrooke residents with their drinking water. The Lago del Oro Water Company is owned by Robson Communities.

       Ethylbenzene is a volatile organic compound (VOC) that can cause a range of symptoms from drowsiness, fatigue, headache and mild eye and respiratory irritation to liver damage, kidney damage, damage to the central nervous system as well as eye damage.

        amount of ethylbenzene detected ranged from 0.5 ppb to 0.7 ppb. The Maximum Contaminant Level for dichloromethane set by the EPA is 700 ppb.

Possible Source of Ethylbenzene

       Even though a well supplying residents of SaddleBrooke with water is approximately four and a half miles from the Page-Trowbridge landfill, the water quality report from the Lago del Oro Water Company claims that the likely source of the ethylbenzene found in the SaddleBrooke water is "discharge from petroleum factories" and "discharge from chemical factories".

       There has never been petroleum or chemical factories located anywhere near the aquifer that supplies SaddleBrooke & Oracle with drinking water. 

       While the total amount and type of toxic chemical waste disposed of a Page-Trowbridge is not known, the existing records list ethylbenzene as having been disposed of at Page-Trowbridge. 

Xylenes

       In 1998, a year after dichloromethane was detected in the Oracle water supply, the Lago del Oro 
Water Company detected xylenes in the SaddleBrooke water supply. 

       A xylene is any of a group of very similar VOC's that can cause a range of symptoms from drowsiness, fatigue, headache and mild eye and respiratory irritation to liver damage, kidney damage, damage to the central nervous system as well as eye damage.

       The amount of xylenes detected ranged from 0.0042 ppm to less than 0.005 ppm. The Maximum Contaminant Level for xylenes set by the EPA is 10 ppm.

Possible Source of Xylenes

       Even though a well supplying residents of SaddleBrooke with water is approximately 4 and a half miles from the Page-Trowbridge landfill, the water quality report from the Lago del Oro Water Company claims that the likely source of the ethylbenzene found in the SaddleBrooke water is "discharge from petroleum factories" and "discharge from chemical factories".

       There has never been petroleum or chemical factories located anywhere near the aquifer that supplies SaddleBrooke & Oracle with drinking water. 

       While the total amount and type of toxic chemical waste disposed of a Page-Trowbridge is not known, the existing records list xylenes as having been disposed of at Page-Trowbridge. 

Bromoform

       In 1998, a year after the detection of dichloromethane in the Oracle water supply, the Lago del Oro Water Company detected bromoform in the SaddleBrooke water supply. 

       Bromoform is a colorless to yellow liquid with an odor like chloroform. The Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) lists Bromoform as a "confirmed animal carcinogen with unknown relevance to humans". 

       Bromoform is an unregulated VOC that is monitored to help EPA to determine where certain contaminants occur and whether it needs to regulate those contaminants.

       The amount of bromoform detected ranged from 1.8 ppb to less than 0.5 ppb. The Maximum Contaminant Level for bromoform set by the EPA is 10 ppm.

Possible Source of Bromoform

       Bromoform is one of a class of chemicals called Trihalomethanes, that may be generated as a by-product of chlorine disinfection.

Page-Trowbridge as Source

       Because there are no pharmaceutical, chemical or petroleum factories near the wells supplying Oracle and SaddleBrooke with their drinking water, and because the same type of contaminants detected in the Oracle and SaddleBrooke drinking water were disposed of at Page-Trowbridge, the only plausible source of the contaminants would seem to be the Page-Trowbridge radioactive/toxic waste landfill. 

       Since there are several millions of pounds of /toxic chemical waste laying over the aquifer at Page-Trowbridge, the residents of Oracle and SaddleBrooke are left to wonder if the contaminants detected in 1997 and 1998 are just be the beginning of a flood of hazardous waste from Page-Trowbridge into their drinking water.

'Drawdown' on Aquifer Will Speed Contamination 

       At a meeting held to discuss the post-closure plan for Page-Trowbridge, Oracle residents expressed their concern to officials from ADEQ, EPA, Pinal County and Robson Communities that the increased demand for water from the aquifer under Page-Trowbridge would hasten the migration of contaminants into the aquifer. 

       Jean Mezler, a hydrologist with ADEQ, agreed with Oracle residents that that the increased demand for water would hasten the migration of contaminants into the aquifer.

40,000 Additional Water Users

       Within the next two weeks, the Pinal County Board of Supervisors will consider several rezoning requests that if approved will allow over 40,000 homes, several commercial centers and several golf courses to be constructed around Page-Trowbridge.

       These proposed expansions will use water from the aquifer under the Page-Trowbridge radioactive/Toxic waste landfill. 

       According to Robson officials, water use for the three golf courses at SaddleBrooke Ranch alone will consume up to 3,000,000 gallons of water a day. 

       Forecasts of water use by the golf courses and in the Willow Springs development, expected to consist of over 30,000 homes, is not yet known.