atlas asbestos mine

LOS GATOS CREEK RD NW OF FRESNO

The Atlas Asbestos Mine site covers 435 acres near Coalinga, California. The mine operated from 1963 until 1979 and consisted of the asbestos mine, a processing mill, support buildings, and extensive asbestos mine tailings. During operation, some milling and mining products from Atlas and the Coalinga Asbestos Mines were transported to the City of Coalinga. In addition, the Coalinga Asbestos Mine, also listed on the National Priorities List (NPL) and located about three miles away, deposited its milling and mining products in Coalinga. (For additional information, please see the separate listing for Coalinga Asbestos Mine). The 107-acre area in the City of Coalinga was operated as an asbestos milling, manufacturing, storage, and transportation center. It consisted of four distinct areas: the warehouse, which once was a mining waste storage and distribution center; a storage yard containing asbestos-contaminated stacked pipes; a shipping yard used as an asbestos distribution center by the Atlas Asbestos Company; and the U.S. Asbestos Company, which stored piles of asbestos-contaminated mining waste. The Atlas mine area drains directly into White Creek, which drains into Los Gatos Creek, a tributary of the Arroyo Pasejaro, a flood area along the California Aqueduct. A detention basin was built in the flood plain to store water during heavy run-off and to allow the asbestos-laden sediment to settle. Sediments carried by floodwaters silted up the detention basin and diminished its storage capacity, so that during heavy floods the waters could potentially be released into the canal through four drain inlets, carrying asbestos into the aqueduct. In the past, elevated levels of asbestos have been found in the aqueduct. However, most of the downstream users of the aqueduct water are protected by filtration and settling pond systems, which trap most of the asbestos fibers. In 2004, the Department of Water Resources enlarged the detention basin to increase its holding capacity during flooding. The area surrounding the Atlas Mine Area (OU1) is primarily rural. The land is used for ranching, farming, and recreational activities such as hunting, hiking, camping, and off-road vehicles. The City of Coalinga (OU2) is a community with a population of approximately 19,000 people.