The Battery Recycling Site covers approximately 50 acres of property to the north and west of the Battery Recycling Co. facility. The land consists of mixed agricultural, residential and commercial areas and is located to the north of city of Arecibo, PR. The area investigated during this investigation included a cattle field adjacent to the facility to the north, a residential neighborhood (Carretera #2 km 72.5 – Central Canvalache) to the north of the facility and a hardware store (Ferreteria Pajuil) to the west of the facility (Figure 1).
Between 1971 and 1979, PR Chemicals owned the property and manufactured fumaric and phthalic acid on the facility. While the company was in operation, they received numerous citations from the EPA and the Puerto Rico Environmental Quality Board (PREQB) for waste management violations, groundwater
contamination and illegal discharges to streams.
From 1996 to present, the property is owned by The Battery Recycling Co. Inc. Lead-acid batteries are recycled on the facility. In 2004, elevated levels of lead were found in employees’ blood. EPA is currently investigating potential acid and lead discharge into air, soil and an adjacent river.
In April 2008 by personnel from the Lockheed Martin Response Engineering and Analytical Contract (REAC) in consultation with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Environmental Response Team (ERT) performed soil sampling to delineate the extent of contamination in the vicinity of the Battery Recycling Site located in Arecibo, Puerto Rico (PR).
