PUSD Soil Cleanup Planned at San Rafael; Other Campuses Unaddressed

Pasadena Unified School District announced that post–Eaton Fire soil testing at San Rafael Elementary confirmed lead contamination above state screening levels, requiring removal and replacement of roughly 2,000 cubic yards of soil—up to four feet deep in some areas—with work planned under DTSC oversight to begin in June 2026 and finish by August 2026. In May 2025 the Department of Public Health announced eleven PUSD campuses were found to have contaminated soil due to the Eaton Fire impacts. There has been no word from PUSD what the plans are for the soil on the other ten campuses in the district. Read the Pasadena Now article here.