The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors approved a program Tuesday to help Altadena homeowners remove soil contaminated with lead from their properties in the Eaton Fire burn area.
The program prioritizes households with standing homes where pregnant women or children younger than 6 years old live because of their greater vulnerability to health risks from lead exposure.
“Families whose homes survived the Eaton Fire have faced obstacle after obstacle,” Barger said in a statement. “Many Altadena residents have spent months waiting for answers while insurance companies have fallen short of meeting survivors’ legitimate needs. Today’s action is an important step forward to help residents safely restore their properties and move on with rebuilding their lives.”
The board authorized the LA County Development Authority to administer the Altadena Soil Remediation Program, expected to launch this fall, that will provide up to $3 million for enrollment, administration and soil remediation work.
The county will contribute $1 million from Supervisor Kathryn Barger’s Fifth District Climate Equity Account combined with $2 million from the 2025-26 state budget that funds the California Community Foundation’s partnership with CONSORTIUM, a group that helps fire-affected families understand and address environmental risks. The acronym stands for Community-Oriented Network for Scientific Observation, Recovery and Tracking of Impacts from Urban Megafires.
According to Barger’s office, CONSORTIUM is an interdisciplinary collaboration that has led soil testing, scientific research and community outreach following the Eaton Fire. The group works with the Department of Angels and the Altadena Recovery and Rebuild Corporation. CONSORTIUM members CAP.LA, USC CLEAN and the LA Fire HEALTH Study will plan how to implement the project and so community engagement “to ensure residents receive the resources and technical support needed to safely recover,” officials said.
The board authorized the Development Authority to oversee the program using an existing county contracting system.
The funding will not affect the county’s General Fund because it comes from Barger’s discretionary Climate Equity Account allocation, officials said.
The Eaton Fire destroyed or damaged more than 10,000 structures and caused the deaths of 19 people in January 2025. Overall damage cost estimates are between $20 and $30 million.
