Erin Brockovich
Paralegal who exposed PG&E groundwater contamination in Hinkley.
Last updated
via Wikipedia: Erin Brockovich · see source
Erin Brockovich is an environmental activist who became known for investigating groundwater contamination in Hinkley, California.[1][2] She has since worked as a consultant for law firms and launched her own consulting company.[3][2]
Last updated 2026-10-08 from the source article.
Key facts and history
Erin Pattee Brockovich was born in Lawrence, Kansas, to a journalist mother and an industrial engineer father.[4] The case alleged contamination of drinking water with hexavalent chromium from PG&E's Hinkley compressor station, built in 1952.[5] Brockovich received $2.5 million as part of her fee from that settlement.[6][7] She left Masry & Vititoe in 2003 to set up Brockovich Research & Consulting.[7]
In 1993, after noticing a pattern of unexplained health problems among residents of Hinkley, California, Brockovich began publicly criticizing Pacific Gas & Electric.[1][2] The contaminated water was released into ponds without liners at the site, and some of it seeped downward, contaminating the groundwater across roughly two square miles.[8] The lawsuit concluded in 1996 with a $333 million settlement, which, at that time, was the biggest payout ever from a direct-action lawsuit in the United States.[6][7]
What the research sources say
A 2009 CBS News report stated that Brockovich found "significant amounts" of hexavalent chromium in the water of over 40 homes in Midland, Texas.[9] Brockovich told CBS News that the levels in Midland were higher than what she saw in Hinkley.[9] A 2016 profile noted that Brockovich realized in 2009 that no one in the US government was tracking environmental disaster information.[7] The same profile stated that Brockovich's instinct, due to her dyslexia, is to turn emails about environmental problems into something visual by placing them on a map.[7]
A 2021 ABC News report quoted Brockovich saying that "Hinkleys are happening everywhere, all the time".[2]
References
- Wikipedia, "Erin Brockovich" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Dorian, "Erin Brockovich: the real story of the town three decades later", ABC News, June 10, 2021; Friedman, "Erin Brockovich: The fabulous American whistleblower has a few more surprises in the pipeline.", thegentlewoman.co.uk, 2016 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Dorian, "Erin Brockovich: the real story of the town three decades later", ABC News, June 10, 2021. facts only, no text reused. abcnews.go.com
- Wikipedia, "Erin Brockovich" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: McDonough, "Erin Brockovich Signs On With NYC Law Firm", ABA Journal, September 26, 2008; "Erin Brockovich Shines", Shine Lawyers; "Girardi & Keese Law Firm"; Maddaus, "Erin Brockovich goes after Shell Oil in Carson", Daily Breeze, September 22, 2009 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Erin Brockovich" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Obituaries / LJWorld.com", ljworld.com (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Erin Brockovich" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Erin Brockovich and Hexavalent Chromium", SkillMD (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Erin Brockovich" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Campbell, "What Erin Brockovich did next", The Guardian, December 10, 2001 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Friedman, "Erin Brockovich", Fall–Winter 2016. facts only, no text reused. thegentlewoman.co.uk
- Wikipedia, "Erin Brockovich" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "PG&E Hinkley Chromium Cleanup", swrcb.ca.gov, September 10, 2008 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- "Brockovich: Midland, Texas Water Sullied", CBS News, June 10, 2009. facts only, no text reused. cbsnews.com
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Erin Brockovich (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
More in Revolutionaries And Activists Of The Americas
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Erin Brockovich (CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Word definitions: the Codexery glossary, each quoted from its Wikipedia article.
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