Hancock Park School (About)

Hancock Park Elementary School is located in the Fairfax District of Los Angeles. Commercial
properties such as the large Park La Brea apartment complex and the Fairfax Area Mall
surround the school campus. Infamously the school is also surrounded by Historical Oil
fields.

Faculty at Hancock Park aim to provide a comfortable and enriching learning environment
for their students. To accomplish this goal, the Friends of Hancock Park School conducts
fundraising activities, seeks grants, and corporate donations to provide more for the
students.

The funds, grants, and donations can support each classroom and staff member. They also
plant and maintain their school farm, which provides significant learning experiences for the
children, considering that their school is in the middle of the city.

Hancock Park has a Native Garden wherein students study plants and insects. This
experience enhances their knowledge and provides a community experience. Hancock Park
Elementary School wants to improve the irrigation of the trees in their Native Garden.

Methane Soil Gas and Hancock Park School

A month after the 1985 Ross Store methane explosion, officials of the Los Angeles Unified
School District detected high levels of methane soil gas under the nearby playground of
Hancock Park Elementary. According to the School Safety Supervisor, a methane explosion
would unlikely happen because the gas was not migrating nor getting trapped inside the
school building and was rapidly dissipated in the open air.

However, this raised concern for the other schools in the area, especially those located near
landfills and oil fields. This concern led to the district officials’ announcement of methane
testing, surveying, and monitoring of 181 school sites. School officials had to conduct
methane testing in each school by drilling holes in the ground and inserting hand-held
probes to measure gas levels.

Methane testing was necessary because methane gas will be explosive if the high methane
concentrations are oxidized by air and exposed to an ignition source. This is what was
believed to have happened in the 1985 Ross Store Methane explosion. Methane gas seeping
from below the earth became trapped in the store’s basement and was ignited by an
electric spark. The blast caused injuries and damage to the interior and exterior of the
building.

Through methane testing, high levels of methane gas were detected in the Hancock
schoolyard but not inside or under the school building itself. It was found that the native
solid within the park was more prone to Methane seepage while the soil beneath the
structure resisted methane migration.

The source of methane gas was unclear, though. The initial 1985 Ross Store explosion report
determined two possible origins—a shallow source organic origin and an oil field origin. At
first, it was believed that the origin of methane gas was the abandoned oil wells in the
Fairfax district. The task force reported that this was improbable because gas was formed
above the production zone. A 1989 methane gas venting in the area, which included forceful
ejection of water and mud, also made the origin of the methane gas more complex.

Despite the confusion, the task force concluded that although knowing the origin aids in the
understanding of the problem, it does not matter when it comes to protecting buildings
from methane gas seepage. The ultimate goal would be to limit or control methane gas
migration by utilizing a gas vapor mitigation system.
https://web.stanford.edu/~meehan/la/pubs/pubross.pdf

Just recently, on February 8, 2015, a small methane explosion occurred near the corner of
Wilshire Blvd and Curson, just across from the La Brea Tar Pits. A methane leak caused it
due to the substantial methane gas releases and build-up in the area. More recently, a gas
leak in the same area was initially suspected to be natural gas. However, it was determined
that the gas buildup was caused by the methane from the La Brea Tar Pits.

How to Prevent Methane Gas Hazards

Aside from being potentially explosive, the buildup of methane gas in an enclosure such as a
school building or a residential home can lead to asphyxiation due to oxygen deprivation. To
prevent, at the very least, control these methane gas hazards, an extensive methane
mitigation process that requires an in-depth overview and knowledge becomes necessary.

Methane Gas Vapor Mitigation is implemented specifically in basement walls and the
foundation. The concrete slab cannot provide enough protection from methane vapor
intrusion. Methane gas vapors can migrate through walls due to the concrete cracks,
pressure, and concentration.

The methane mitigation process includes installing a methane barrier, which is one of its key
components. The methane barrier is an impermeable membrane that acts as a seal for the
concrete slab and is installed below the foundation of a structure. This membrane is
installed to decrease the amount of migration of methane gas vapor.

Because of the urgency to come up with a solution after the destructive 1985 Ross Store
methane explosion, Methane Mitigation Engineers wanted to implement a methodology
that involved the design and construction of a sealant beneath the foundation of structures
to ensure that no methane nor other harmful gas could penetrate a foundation.
To execute this plan, Gas Vapor Intrusion Consultants wanted to utilize products that were
already tested, proven and had decades of proven field data. They saw the potential for gas
vapor mitigation in waterproofing products.

To validate this hypothesis, a licensed LADBS Testing Agency tested these preexisting
Waterproofing Membranes for use as a Methane Barrier. Methane Test Results showed that
some waterproofing products like spray-applied asphalt emulsions slowed down the mass
diffusion of methane. Methane consultants and LADBS collaborated to develop the first
specifications for methane barriers. This was the most efficient solution, given that creating
an entirely new methodology for methane mitigation would take too much time.

Methane Gas Hazard Engineers had to establish the LADBS Methane Mitigation Standard
Plans, which define a system with Methane detectors, Methane alarms, and Lowest Level
Methane Ventilation fans in areas with high-risk methane gas intrusion. The LADBS Methane
Mitigation Standard Plans, which outline the current LADBS requirements for succeeding
construction projects.

Methane Alarms and Methane Sensors are necessary for the continuous monitoring of the
concentrations of methane. If concentrations reach a certain level, the active alarm system
will be triggered to notify occupants of the possible Methane Hazard. These will be installed
in the subsurface areas and the lowest space of the building.

The sub-slab vent system must be implemented to decrease the mass diffusion rate of
methane gas. Highly concentrated and pressurized gas vapors will naturally migrate into an
area with less concentration. The sub-slab vent system will depressurize the subfloor by
directing the methane gas flow through the vents rather than the structure, ultimately
reducing the mass diffusion rate.

This system includes exhaust fans and/or blowers, a perforated pipe, and a gravel blanket
installed below the surface of the building. The sub-slab vent system also provides relief in
the case of an obstruction on the membrane. This system needs to be designed by a
licensed professional engineer who has experience designing methane depressurization
vent systems.

That’s why to ensure that methane mitigation is adequately done, the design to be
implemented and materials to be used for the construction must meet the LADBS standards.
A licensed Methane Mitigation Contractor must be consulted for the methane mitigation
construction and for the verification of the foundation seal's security to prevent further
methane vapor intrusion. A Methane Deputy Inspector also has to oversee and approve of
the installation during the construction.