Hinkley, CA Pacific Gas and Electric Company compressor station

A Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) compressor station in Hinkley, California. Although hexavalent chromium occurs naturally in groundwater in the Mojave Desert, concentrations increased in Hinkley Valley beginning in 1952 when the PG&E discharged it into unlined ponds. From there, hexavalent chromium entered the aquifer. Once in the ground, a plume of hexavalent chromium traveled with groundwater away from the Hinkley compressor station into Hinkley Valley.