United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Solid Waste and
Emergency Response
(5502G)
EPA520-F-93-009
Summer 1993
& EPA Superfund At Work
Hazardous Waste Cleanup Efforts Nationwide
Success in Brief
Accelerated Cleanup at
Tri-State Plating
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) cleans up hazard-
ous wastes on land, in the air, and in water. EPA's Superfund program
encounters many situations never dealt with before, such as dump
sites in residential areas, burled wastes in unknown amounts and
concentrations, and hazardous chemicals leaking into drinking water
sources. Each Superfund site is uniquely problematic, therefore every
cleanup selected must meet the specific needs of the community. At .
the Tri-State Plating site in Columbus, Indiana, EPA: ;
• Removed 27 barrels of electroplating waste from this quiet j
neighborhood site;
• Demolished on-site buildings and removed more than 2,400
cubic yards of contaminated soil; and
• Accessed a municipal wastewater treatment plant to treat
polluted ground water, saving approximately $700,000 in costs.
In addition to trimming five years off the cleanup schedule, EPA
addressed community concerns regarding the actions being taken to
remedy the site for future use.
Site Description:
A former electroplating-facility in
Columbus, Indiana
Primary Contaminants:
Cyanide, acids, cadmium, copper,
chromium, lead, nickel, and arsenic
Potential Range of Health Risks:
Ingestion of contaminants could
lead to kidney problems, high
blood pressure, anemia or ulcers
Nearby Population:
30,000 people within the city
Ecological Concerns:
Scores of local birds died after
drinking contaminated water
Year Listed on the NPL: 1986
EPA Region: V
State: Indiana
Congressional District: 9
A History of Contamination at Tri-State Plating
Workers dump
waste products
Waste products
discharged Wo city
sewer system
Contamination
migrates
through soil into
ground water
77 West Jackson Boulevard, 12th Floor
Chicago, IL 60604-3590
The Site Today
EPA has removed electroplat-
ing wastes and demolished
contaminated structures. Exca-
vated soil has been replaced with
clean fill and seeded for grass.
The site is now open to the public.
An automated pumping
facility and a discharge pipe that-
carries polluted ground water
from the site to the public waste-*
water treatment plant has been
constructed. The ground water
cleanup is expected to be com-
pleted in early 1994.
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Superfund At Work • Tri-State Plating, Columbus, IN
Summer 1993
The Tri-State Plating site
covers approximately one acre
in the heart of a residential
neighborhood in
Columbus, Indiana.
The closest home rests
on the border of the
site property. A mu-
nicipal well field that
supplies drinking
water to many of
Columbus' 30,000
residents lies just 800
feet away. Haw Creek,
which flows through
the city, is two blocks
from the site.
In 1946, two companies, Hull
Industries and Quality Plating
Service, began electroplating
operations at the site. In 1981,
Tri-State Plating, Inc. bought
A Site Snapshot
the facility and continued opera-
tions. The company's improper
disposal and handling of electro-
plating chemicals and wastes
resulted in extensive contamina-
tion of the facility and surround-
ing area.
The soil and process buildings
were laden with cyanide, acids,
and heavy metals including
cadmium, chromium, copper,
lead, nickel, and
arsenic. The ground
water in the area was
contaminated with
chromium, threaten-
ing the City of Colum-
bus' water supply
through the municipal
well field.
Without EPA
cleanup, direct contact
with contaminated
soil or accidental
consumption of
untreated ground water could
have lead to kidney problems,
high blood pressure, anemia,
ulcers or lung, kidney, and
prostate cancer.
Tri-State Plating
Site Timeline
Tri-State shuts down operations <^
County and state discover widespread contamination
• City of Columbus orders wastewater controls
• Tri-State ignores orders
• City shuts off Tri-State's water
• Tri-State Plating Inc. buys site
Company conducts negligent operations
Superfund enacted
1
Electroplating operations on site
1946
1980 1981
1983 198
Page 2
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Superfund At Work
Tri-State Plating, Columbus, IN
Summer 1993
EPA's Cleanup Eliminates 40 Years of Illegal
and Improper Waste Disposal
Tri-State Plating
Columbus, Indiana
Illegal Dumping, Discharging
Causes Contamination
Tri-State Plating conducted
operations until 1984. Company
workers apparently dumped waste
products from the electroplating
process directly onto the ground
at the site; barrels of chemical
wastes and debris began to pile
up. In addition, the company
illegally discharged effluent into
the city sewers, causing the
shutdown of the municipal
treatment plant.
Congress enacted the Super-
fund law in 1980, allocating
federal dollars for the cleanup of
the nation's abandoned or uncon-
trolled hazardous waste sites.
Heightened awareness of the
dangers of hazardous wastes
caused local officials to take a
closer look at this residential
facility. Tri-State's highly visible
location and its illegal discharges
Site inspections
revealed the soil was
contaminated with
cyanide and heavy metals
into the city sewers warranted
immediate attention.
In 1983, the City of Columbus,
Bartholomew County Health
Department, and the Indiana State
Board of Health (ISBH) inspected
the site. Their preliminary inspec-
tions revealed soil contaminated
by cyanide and J **•*
heavy metals. \ *
The city j J*
ordered Tri- f . f
State to install (fX^fV^
a wastewater treatment system.
The company ignored the city's
demands, and so Tri-State's sewer
lines and water supply were cut
off. Two months later, Tri-State
closed down operations.
Local Officials Call in
Reinforcements
In 1984, local officials investi-
gated reports of an alarming
number of birds dying in the area.
The birds were poisoned by
drinking from contaminated
puddles.
r
EPA begins site studies
> • Site listed on NPL
• Negotiations with Tri-State end
• EPA conducts first removal
EPA completes second removal
Construction of pumping facility and
pipe from site to POTW begins
Construction complete
Ground water treatment begins
Ground water treatment
complete (planned)
Site deleted from
NPL (planned)
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Superfund At Work • Tri-State Plating, Columbus, IN
Summer 1993
State and local officials deter-
mined that the chemicals had
spread through the soil and into
the ground water, potentially
threatening the drinking water of
thousands of Columbus resi-
dents. Local officials turned to
EPA for assistance in the early
months of 1985.
EPA quickly conducted pre-
liminary tests of the site, confirm-
ing the original assessment by the
County and ISBH. In 1986, EPA
included the site on the National
Priorities List (NPL). Sites on the
NPL are eligible for federal fund-
ing, however EPA's policy is to
compel responsible parties to
Local officials
turned to EPA
for assistance
clean up hazardous waste sites.
EPA then initiated a search to
identify owners and operators of
the Tri-State site.
Eliminating the Source Reduces
Immediate Concerns
EPA's search revealed that Tri-
State Plating, Inc. was primarily
responsible for polluting the site.
In April 1987, EPA entered into
negotiations with Tri-State to
perform studies of the site con-
tamination. These negotiations
ended unsuccessfully less than
two weeks later, and so EPA began
preliminary site investigations.
Realizing that the site con-
taminants posed an immediate
threat, an EPA emergency re-
sponse team removed 27 leaking
drums containing electroplating
waste to a licensed hazardous
waste facility. EPA also erected a
fence around the site to prevent
public access.
The team then completely
emptied the main building that
housed the electroplating opera-
tions and the storage shed behind
it. Contaminated soil around the
building was excavated to a
depth of four feet, and around the
rest of the site to a depth of one
foot, and replaced with clean fill.
An EPA emergency
response team
removed 27 leaking drums
These emergency actions were
completed in just three months
during the summer and early fall
of 1987
continued on page 5
Decontamination at Tri-State Plating: the main processing building was
decontaminated and its foundation excavated. Walls were blasted with abrasives,
then residues removed by high-power vacuum.
Page 4
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Superfund At Work
Tri-State Plating, Columbus,
• Summer 1993
Cleanup Efficiency
Reduces Future Expenditures
EPA's studies showed that
the removal operations had
reduced the ground water
contamination low enough
to be treated in the city's
Publicly Owned Treatment
Works (POTW). POTWs are
standard wastewater treat-
ment facilities for domestic
wastewater.
Using the POTW to treat
the contaminated ground
water reduced the cost of the
ground water cleanup by
$700,000 and eliminated the
time it would have taken to build
an on-site treatment facility. EPA
used a well constructed to test the
ground water to extract the
contaminated water for treatment
by the POTW. All that was
needed was pump-
ing equipment
and a pipe from
the site to the
treatment plant.
Construction
began in September
1990 and was com-
pleted in March 1991,
at which time treatment began.
EPA estimates that the ground
water will be cleaned up by 1994,
at least five years ahead of the
original schedule.
EPA's Cleanup Allows Future Use of Site
continued from page 4
Although these actions elimi-
nated the threat of direct contact
with hazardous wastes, the
abandoned structures remained a
source of contamination to
Studies indicated that
the city's drinking water
was not affected
ground water. EPA's studies had
indicated that the City of Colum-
bus' drinking water was not
affected by the hazardous wastes
at the site. However, the contami-
nated ground water presented a
threat to future residents who may
want to drill wells in the area. The
contaminated ground water also
was discharging into Haw Creek,
posing ecological threats to the
creek and local wildife.
Completing the Effort
In 1989, the EPA team per-
formed a second removal. Work-
ers dismantled and disposed of
the main process building and
storage shed, excavated the
foundation of the building and
the underlying contaminated soil,
and hauled an additional 2,400
cubic yards of contaminated soil
to an approved landfill in Peoria,
Illinois. The soil was replaced
with clean fill and seeded for
grass. The site was then consid-
ered safe and the surrounding
fence was removed.
EPA plans to delete the site
from the NPL in 1995. The City of
Columbus will evaluate potential
new uses for this property.
Page 5
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Superfund At Work • Tri-State Plating, Columbus, IN • Summer 1993
Answering Community Concerns Success at
EPA stresses the importance of
working closely with the commu-
nity to share information about
the site's progress and to provide
various opportunities for ad-
dressing concerns and questions.
Because the Tri-State Plating site
was located in the heart of a
residential area, the public was
deeply concerned.
EPA held open meetings to
answer specific questions and
published regular site fact sheets.
EPA also set up a public educa-
tion program to inform residents
about the site contaminants and
their environmental effects.
In addition, EPA altered the
cleanup routine to avoid unneces-
sary disruptions to local resi-
dents. Trucks that were used to
haul the building debris and
contaminated soil waited in a city
parking lot until the cleanup team
radioed them in for loading. This
kept the neighborhood streets
clear during most days.
A recent example which dem-
onstrates the importance EPA
places on addressing community
concerns occurred in 1992. Ap-
praisers had refused to evaluate
properties in the area because of
their proximity to the site. Local
banks began to refuse loans to
homeowners and businesses as
well. Members of the community
brought this to EPA's attention.
In response, EPA held a public
meeting with the Federal Hous-
ing Authority, bankers, apprais-
ers, and community members to
discuss liability issues and prop-
erty values surrounding the Tri-
State site. As a result of this
meeting, loans are again being
issued.
Tri-State
Plating
EPA's cleanup actions at
the site eliminated direct
exposure and the most
serious sources of contami-
nation at the site. In addi-
tion, polluted ground water
is being treated by the
municipal sewage plant,
eliminating the need to
construct an on-site treat-
ment system.
EPA worked with com-
munity members to ensure
that concerns and questions
were addressed, and that
site cleanup actions lead
to improved property
values in the surrounding
community.
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