Cleanup Programs

Chemicals were first detected in groundwater on Aerojet’s Sacramento facility in 1979. In response, Aerojet built its first groundwater extraction and treatment plant in 1981 to investigate and remove volatile organic compounds from groundwater beneath its property.

Today, Aerojet currently operates five Groundwater Extraction and Treatment systems (GETs) at its Sacramento site, which treat approximately 10,000 gallons of groundwater per minute, year-round. The GETs treat VOCs, primarily trichloroethylene (TCE), and chemicals related to the construction and testing of rocket motors including perchlorate and N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA).

Aerojet has treated approximately 60 billion gallons of water since1981, removing approximately 500,000 pounds of chemicals from the treated groundwater.

In 2003, Aerojet agreed to transfer ownership of the treated water to the County of Sacramento to provide a source of replacement water for impacted water supplies in the eastern portion of Sacramento County.

Aerojet is designing and constructing a new groundwater extraction and treatment (GET) system to capture and treat chemicals in groundwater west of its Sacramento facility. The Western Groundwater Operable Unit is expected to treat approximately 5,000 gallons per minute at completion. Portions of this system are anticipated to start operating in the winter of 2004, and are anticipated to be fully operational in the summer of 2005.

Aerojet has ongoing investigations to further define the nature and extent of chemicals in groundwater around the perimeter of the site. To accomplish its investigations, Aerojet has installed approximately 2,000 monitoring wells on its property and the surrounding area.