PUSD building (Photo – ColoradoBlvd.net)
The Pasadena Unified School District announced on Wednesday that City of Pasadena stop notices issued for seven PUSD campuses could delay the removal of fire-related contaminated soil needed to reopen schools safely for the 2026-27 academic year.
By News Desk
PUSD has been carrying out a soil removal and replacement project to address what it described as “an imminent and substantial threat” to students, teachers and community members following contamination linked to the Eaton Fire. All information in this article was provided by a PUSD spokesperson.
PUSD’s position is that the cleanup is necessary to ensure the continued safe use of school campuses and PUSD’s Education Center. PUSD has worked with arborists and environmental consultants to preserve as many mature and native trees as possible, but some trees, vegetation and infrastructure must be removed to safely excavate contaminated soil within a limited construction window.
Despite stop-work notices issued by the City of Pasadena affecting contaminated soil removal and tree removal activities at seven campuses, PUSD remains focused on completing the cleanup and restoring campuses before the start of the school year.
The cleanup follows guidance issued to PUSD on April 16, 2025, by the Pasadena Public Health Department recommending that schools and early childhood education centers in affected communities close outdoor areas with exposed soil until testing could be completed by qualified professionals.
PUSDt consulted with the Pasadena Public Health Department, Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, the California Environmental Protection Agency and the California Department of Toxic Substances Control before conducting soil testing and developing a remediation plan. Outdoor areas were closed, and an environmental consultant was hired to test for fire-related contaminants.
Testing conducted under recommendations from the Department of Toxic Substances Control and local public health agencies found that 11 campuses contain significant amounts of fire-related contaminated soi. More than 8,000 cubic yards of contaminated soil must be removed from those campuses by mid-August to allow full reopening for the 2026-27 school year.
PUSD has remained in communication with the City of Pasadena since the Eaton Fire, and the Department of Toxic Substances Control is overseeing the remediation work alongside PUSD. Although PUSD has consulted with City officials, the soil remediation project falls outside the City’s jurisdiction.
PUSD has shared its testing results, remediation plans and a July 6 letter with the City. When issuing the stop notices, the City indicated that no trees should be removed but “has not offered viable solutions” for removing all contaminated soil before the school year begins.
PUSD is responsible for eliminating health and safety threats posed by contaminated soil in consultation with the Department of Toxic Substances Control and in compliance with other regulatory agencies, including the South Coast Air Quality Management District.
“Every day this work is delayed is a day our children and staff remain further from safely returning to fully restored campuses that must reopen for the 2026-2027 school year,” the PUSD spokesperson said.
PUSD understands the community’s attachment to campus trees and continues to look for ways to preserve mature and native trees while removing contaminated soil. The work is intended to eliminate contaminants that pose health risks and restore access to outdoor play areas, a soccer field, community gardens and other spaces that have remained closed since last year.
PUSD will continue the project “with urgency, transparency, and care” and hopes the City will work with PUSD to return students to school safely.
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