A long-awaited cleanup operation is poised to kick off mid-September at the site of the old Lincoln Gun Range and the decommissioned Titan 1-A missile silo, an initiative set to purify the land of lead contamination, according to Placer County officials. The enterprise, which will unfold over approximately two months, aims to render the site suitable for residential use—a reassurance to the local community mindful of their environmental legacy.
Residents near the site on Oak Tree Lane should anticipate the arrival of Metals Treatment Technologies (MT2), a firm specializing in rehabilitating areas affected by industrial activity. Their presence signals the county’s commitment to addressing the lead residues left behind by former marksmanship and law enforcement training on these now-silent ranges. Since their closure in 1999, little has been done to erase the scars left on the land. The remediation strategy is thorough: excavate the soil, sift out the lead shot, treat what remains, and remove what is contaminated—a painstaking process overseen by the county’s consultant, Provost & Pritchard Consulting Group, which will work to ensure that neither airborne particulates nor stormwater create new threats as old ones are eliminated.
Tasks to be undertaken include the extraction and recycling of spent ammunition, but the efforts transcend mere cleanup—this is about creating a space that outlives the toxicity of its past, transforming a once-dangerous soil into a cradle for community renewal. "Thanks to the expertise of our Facilities Management team and the contractor we’ve selected, I’m confident this cleanup will be done right," declared District 2 Supervisor Shanti Landon in a statement; she also expressed gratitude for the hard work aimed at redeeming the land for the community's benefit, as reported by County of Placer.
Placer County acquired the property in the 1960s to give law enforcement a place to train, but changing times and community needs made that purpose outdated. The county now plans to turn the site into potential parkland. If the project finishes on schedule by December, the once noisy range could become a place of peace—an outcome welcomed by both residents and environmental advocates.
