Fact Sheet and Public Review Notice No. 01 Hilmar Company December 19, 9001 North Lander Avenue, Hilmar, California 2008

The Hilmar Cheese INTRODUCTION Company (HCC) operates the world’s Environmental investigations are being conducted at HCC under a Cleanup and Abatement largest cheese and Order, dated December 4, 2004. This work is conducted under the direction of the Central products Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board (CVRWQCB), the state agency responsible for manufacturing facility protecting the waters of California. The primary objectives of the investigation activities located north of include: Hilmar, California in Merced County • defining the environmental setting for the area PUBLIC INFORMATION PROCESS (Figure 1). HCC was including the underlying Site soil types, and founded in 1984 by groundwater flow directions; This fact sheet, the first in a local families, series, is intended to provide a beginning production • determining the lateral and vertical extent of general overview of the in 1985. HCC currently impact to soil and groundwater beneath the environmental investigations uses more than 2 Site from Total Dissolved Solids and other conducted at the HCC Site. The million gallons of parameters; reader is directed to technical /day to reports prepared for the Site for manufacture a variety • determining if the water quality in private a full presentation and discussion of cheese and whey wells has been affected by HCC; and of the data. products each day. • identifying and documenting surrounding land INFORMATION REPOSITORY During the course of use in the vicinity of HCC. manufacturing, HCC Repository for Technical uses millions of gallons BACKGROUND Documents: of water each day, Hilmar Cheese Company* with approximately HCC began discharging wastewater to HCC owned www.hilmarcheese.com 90% of the water in adjacent fields known as the Primary Lands in 1989. 9001 Lander Avenue milk being recovered The Primary Lands are currently comprised of Hilmar, California, 95324 and reused. On a daily approximately 144 acres, although the acreage has * Computer access is available at the basis, approximately varied over time in response to facility changes. The HCC facility. 60% of the water used Primary Lands and the HCC facility are collectively is made up of the Full Administrative Record: referred to as the Site (Figure 1). water recovered from Regional Water Quality the milk. HCC Control Board maintains a state‐of‐ Central Valley Region the‐art wastewater 1685 E Street treatment system. A Fresno, California 93706 significant portion of the wastewater Online Source for Technical discharged is highly Documents: treated and used as reclaimed water for State Water Resources the irrigation of local Control Board crops. The remaining GeoTracker WebSite partially treated www.geotracker.swrcb.ca.gov wastewater, approximately 0.50 million gallons per day (mgd), is discharged to fields known as Primary Lands which Figure 1 Site Location Map are located adjacent Page 1 to the HCC processing facility. Fact Sheet and Public Review Notice No. 01, December 19, 2008

The discharge of wastewater to the Primary Lands has resulted in the build‐up of dissolved solids, commonly referred to as salts, in the Site soils and underlying groundwater. Total dissolved solids (TDS) is the primary measurement that is used at the Site to measure groundwater impact. Although TDS is not a health risk, it can affect the taste of water. Additionally, high TDS levels can affect irrigation and industrial uses.

FUTURE ACTIVITIES HCC is developing a work plan to address the remaining data gaps. The results of this effort will be summarized, along with all previous and on‐going work, in a Final Remedial Investigation Report.

DOCUMENTS AVAILABLE FOR REVIEW The following documents are available for review in the information repository identified on Page 1. • Interim Data Deliverable and Field Investigation Summary (SGI, August 31, 2007) • Phase II Investigation Data Deliverable and Summary Report (JJ&A, June 23, 2008) • Supply Well Evaluation Technical Report (JJ&A, August 15, 2008) • Preliminary Conceptual Site Model Report (JJ&A, October 1, 2008)

Comments on assessment reports should be submitted in writing to the Regional Water Quality Control Board within 30 days of this Fact Sheet date. FOR MORE INFORMATION For questions regarding the progress of work, contact the HCC Environmental Director: Mr. Burton Fleischer, HCC Environmental Director 9001 North Lander Avenue Hilmar, California 95324 (209) 656‐2271 For questions regarding state regulatory oversight: Jan Alfson, Regional Water Quality Control Board 1685 E Street Fresno, California 93706 (559) 445‐5116

PROJECT COMMUNICATIONS AND PUBLIC REVIEW If you did not receive this Fact Sheet in the mail, then you are not on the mailing list. If you wish to be placed on the mailing list, please call Jennifer Garner with Jacobson James & Associates at 916.660.9994, extension 111.

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