The City of Stockton is home to an estimated 310,496 residents, and it’s located in San Joaquin County, CA.
This report will help you become better acquainted with Stockton and the surrounding area by addressing the following questions:
Are there any hazardous sites in San Joaquin County, CA?
How clean is the air in San Joaquin County, CA?
What’s the average radon level for homes in San Joaquin County, CA?
Is the water in San Joaquin County, CA safe to drink?
Hazardous Sites near Stockton, CA
There are four Superfund sites in San Joaquin County, CA. Superfund sites, like McCormick & Baxter Creosoting Co. in Stockton, CA, are areas that have been contaminated with hazardous substances. If not for the cleanup efforts orchestrated by the EPA, these sites could endanger people living in nearby communities.
The EPA uses the Hazardous Ranking System (HRS) to quantify the risk a contaminated site poses to human health and the environment. Sites assigned HRS scores of 28.5 or greater qualify for placement on the National Priorities List (NPL), and are eligible to receive federal funding for cleanup efforts.
Before the EPA deletes a site from the NPL, it conducts reviews to ensure the cleanup was sufficient. As a result, some sites remain on the active site list long after cleanup activities are complete.
For more information about the Superfund sites located in the Stockton, CA area, be sure to review the map and background information provided below:
Map Legend:
06077
A. McCormick & Baxter Creosoting Co. (HRS Score: 75)
The McCormick & Baxter Creosoting Co. site, a former creosote wood treating facility, is located in Stockton, CA.
Contaminants found at the McCormick & Baxter Creosoting Co. site include:
Arsenic
Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs)
9H-Fluorene
Dioxins (Chlorinated Dibenzodioxins)
Anthracene
06077
B. Sharpe Army Depot (HRS Score: 42)
The Sharpe Army Depot site, used to dispose of chemical wastes from 1941 to 1975, is located in Lathrop, CA.
Contaminants found at the Sharpe Army Depot site include:
Aluminum
Antimony
Arsenic
Barium
Benzene
06077
C. Tracy Defense Depot (USArmy) (HRS Score: 37)
The Tracy Defense Depot (USArmy) site is in Tracy, CA. It was used for a variety of activities, including repacking leaking chemicals, and storing and mixing pesticides.
Contaminants found at the Tracy Defense Depot (USArmy) site include:
Aluminum
Arsenic
Barium
Beryllium
Chloroform
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D. Lawrence Livermore Natl Lab (Site 300) (USDOE) (HRS Score: 32)
The Lawrence Livermore Natl Lab (Site 300) (USDOE) site, used by the U.S. Department of Energy for nuclear weapons research, is located in Tracy, CA.
Contaminants found at the Lawrence Livermore Natl Lab (Site 300) (USDOE) site include:
Benzene
Beryllium
Cadmium
Chloroform
Lead
Air Quality in the Stockton, CA Area
The two most widespread forms of air pollution are ozone (smog) and particle pollution (soot). Exposure to these harmful pollutants, for even just a short period, can have adverse effects on your health.
Thanks to data collected by air monitoring equipment located across the country, the American Lung Association (ALA) is able to assess and track our air quality using three metrics:
Ozone
Short-term Particle Pollution
Year-round Particle Pollution
In their 2019 annual report, the ALA rated the air quality in San Joaquin County, CA as follows:
Ground-LevelOzone Pollution
Grading Scale: A-F
Short-TermParticle Pollution
Grading Scale: A-F
Year-RoundParticle Pollution
Grading Scale: Pass/Fail
Radon Levels in Stockton, CA Area
Air quality inside your home can be impacted by a number of factors, including the presence of hazardous substances in building materials (asbestos, lead, formaldehyde, etc.) and local radon levels.
Radon is a naturally occurring gas you cannot see or smell. It can build up inside your home and negatively impact your indoor air quality as well as your health.
To provide a guideline, the EPA assigned one of three zones to each U.S. county and county equivalent:
Zone 1 (higher radon levels)
Zone 2 (moderate levels)
Zone 3 (lower levels)
The average indoor radon reading in San Joaquin County, CA is predicted to be less than 2 picocuries per liter (pCi/L), so the county has been assigned EPA Radon Zone 3.
EPA Radon Zone
But, it's worth mentioning homes with elevated levels of radon have been found in all three radon zones. So, despite the fact Stockton, CA is in EPA Radon Zone 3, you should have a radon test performed on any home you purchase in the area.
Water Quality in Stockton, CA Area
In accordance with the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA), the EPA sets regulatory limits for drinking water contaminants known to cause adverse health effects.
The following San Joaquin County, CA water provider(s) violated the maximum allowable level for one or more regulated contaminants:
Infants below the age of six months who drink water containing nitrate in excess of the MCL could become seriously ill and, if untreated, may die. Symptoms include shortness of breath and blue-baby syndrome.
Infants below the age of six months who drink water containing nitrate in excess of the MCL could become seriously ill and, if untreated, may die. Symptoms include shortness of breath and blue-baby syndrome.
Infants below the age of six months who drink water containing nitrate in excess of the MCL could become seriously ill and, if untreated, may die. Symptoms include shortness of breath and blue-baby syndrome.
Infants below the age of six months who drink water containing nitrate in excess of the MCL could become seriously ill and, if untreated, may die. Symptoms include shortness of breath and blue-baby syndrome.
06077
Glenwood Mobile Home Park
Nitrate-Nitrite
Infants below the age of six months who drink water containing nitrate in excess of the MCL could become seriously ill and, if untreated, may die. Symptoms include shortness of breath and blue-baby syndrome.; Infants below the age of six months who drink water containing nitrite in excess of the MCL could become seriously ill and, if untreated, may die. Symptoms include shortness of breath and blue-baby syndrome.
Infants below the age of six months who drink water containing nitrate in excess of the MCL could become seriously ill and, if untreated, may die. Symptoms include shortness of breath and blue-baby syndrome.
Infants below the age of six months who drink water containing nitrate in excess of the MCL could become seriously ill and, if untreated, may die. Symptoms include shortness of breath and blue-baby syndrome.
Infants below the age of six months who drink water containing nitrate in excess of the MCL could become seriously ill and, if untreated, may die. Symptoms include shortness of breath and blue-baby syndrome.
Skin damage or problems with circulatory systems, and may have increased risk of getting cancer
In addition to setting enforceable standards for harmful contaminants, the EPA also established guidelines to assist public water providers in managing the taste, odor and color of their drinking water.
To find out more about what’s in your drinking water, contact your utility company and request a copy of the latest Consumer Confidence Report.
Sources and Methods
Hazardous Sites: Identified using a report from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), hazardous sites detailed on trendingtowns.com represent sites contained on the National Priorities List (NPL) as of November 25, 2019. The NPL is the list of national priorities among the known releases or threatened releases of hazardous substances, pollutants, or contaminants throughout the United States and its territories. All site-related data was sourced from the EPA.
Air Quality: Grades for ozone, short-term particle pollution, and year-round particle pollution were obtained from State of the Air 2019, a report compiled by the American Lung Association.
Radon Zones: Radon zone designations were obtained using a public use dataset provided by the EPA (September 11, 2019).
Water Quality: Drinking water violation data was sourced from the Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS), a public use database provided by the EPA. The dataset included violations submitted to the database as of the third quarter of 2019.
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