United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Solid Waste and
Emergency Response
(5502G)
EPA 520-F-94-007
Winter 1994
Superfund At Work
Hazardous Waste Cleanup Efforts Nationwide
New Brighton
Site Profile
Site Description: Army ammuni-
tions plant + parts of seven sur-
rounding communities outside
Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN
Site Size: 25 square miles
Primary Contaminants: Volatile
organic compounds, heavy metals,
and polychlorinated biphenyls
Potential Range of Health Risks:
Increased risk of cancer from
ingestion of contaminated
drinking water
Nearby Population: 100,000
Ecological Concerns: Rice Creek
and freshwater marshes and
woodlands
Year Listed on NPL: 1983
EPA Region: 5
State: Minnesota
Congressional District: 4
Women were employed in munitions production during World War II as part of
the "Keep 'Em Shooting" campaign.
Success in Brief
U. S. Army Cleans Up
Superfund Site
Billions of rounds of small-arms ammunition were manufactured at
the Twin Cities Army Ammunition Plant (TCAAP), supporting the
military in three major wars. During the course of production, solvents
and hazardous chemical wastes migrated into area ground water,
contaminating municipal and private wells. As part of a three-party
agreement, the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Minne-
sota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) staff, and the U.S. Army are
working together to clean up TCAAP and 25 square miles of ground
water affecting the adjacent metropolitan area. Highlights of the over-
all effort have included:
removal of nearly 232,000 pounds of solvents from soil using an
innovative technology, soil vapor extraction;
treatment of more than six billion gallons of ground water from
TCAAP extraction wells; and
construction of two treatment plants to purify municipal water
supplies in neighboring cities.
The TCAAP property includes wetlands and undisturbed natural
habitat supporting an extensive
variety of wildlife. Related
cleanup efforts will protect a
sensitive ecosystem currently
sustained as a refuge despite
increasing urban pressures.
The Site Today
Two ground water treatment
plants are operating to remove
contaminants from the New
Brighton and St. Anthony mu-
nicipal water supplies, ensuring
future resources for both cities.
An elaborate system also treats
ground water at TCAAP while
the Army monitors more than
300 area wells. Work to address
soil and surface water contami-
nation at the site is ongoing.
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Superfund At Work New Brighton Site, New Brighton, MN Winter 1994
A Site Snapshot
Located in Ramsey County ground water, surface water,
approximately two miles north sediment, and soil on the site and
of Minneapolis/St. Paul, this in the Prairie Du Chien/Jordan
Superfund site includes parts of aquifer systems. The most wide-
New Brighton, St. Anthony,
Arden Hills, and several other
communities, and includes 25
square miles of contaminated
ground water. Approximately
100,000 people live in sur-
rounding communities and
several schools are located
within two miles of the site.
Contamination of
New Brighton's munici-
pal drinking water was
detected in 1981 by
MPCA staff and the Minne-
sota Department of Health
(MDH). Fifty-four chemicals of
concern were identified in the
spread contaminants are volatile
organic compounds (VOCs), most
notably trichloroethylene (TCE),
as well as heavy metals and
New Brighton Site
New Brighton, Minnesota
polychlorinated biphenyls
(PCBs). These chemicals were
byproducts of periodic muni-
tions manufacturing conducted
at TCAAP during 22 of the last
52 years.
Ecological concerns include
Rice Creek and surrounding
freshwater marshes, prairies,
and woodlands. Nearly 1700
acres of TC AAP property have
been virtually undisturbed,
despite continual metropolitan
growth in all directions around
the plant. MarsdenLake,
covering 560 acres, is one of the
largest undisturbed wetlands in
this part of the state, supporting
such species as trumpeter
swans, bluebirds, wood ducks,
and Blandings turtles.
New Brighton Site
Timeline
' St. Anthony shuts down two wells, obtains water from Rosevie
«Site placed on NPL
EPA studies ground water
Army provides bottled water
St. Anthony detects contamination
1 New Brighton shuts down six wells 4
1
MPCA discovers contamination of drinking water
Superfund enacted
TCAAP begins manufacture of armaments
I
^ U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Region 5, Library flk-12J)
1941
1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
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Superfund At Work New Brighton Site, New Brighton, I
Winter 1994
Ammunitions Production Taints Ground Water
Solvents Used to
Degrease Metals
The Twin Cities Army Ammu-
nitions Plant (TCAAP) has been a
munitions producer since 1941.
Beginning with .50 caliber shells
during World War II, armaments
and other weapons systems were
manufactured there, requiring
extensive use of solvents to
degrease metals. Until 1967,
solvent wastes and significant
amounts of unusable ammunition
were dumped or burned in 14
different areas on the plant prop-
erty, contaminating an estimated
25 square miles of ground water.
Superfund Sets the Stage for
Investigation and Cleanup
In 1980, Congress enacted the
Comprehensive Environmental
Response, Compensation, and
Liability Act (CERCLA) establish-
ing the Superfund program.
Designed to address thousands of
hazardous waste sites nation-
wide, CERCLA included provi-
sions for responsible parties to
conduct cleanup operations.
During the development of
legislation, DoD established an
installation restoration program
to identify, investigate, and
control the migration of hazard-
ous wastes at military bases
across the country.
Municipal and Private
Wells Tested
In 1981, MPCA staff received a
copy of a 1978 U.S. Army report
detailing the history of waste
disposal at TCAAP. MPCA and
MDH sampling found VOCs in
and near TCAAP wells and in
New Brighton's municipal water
supply, including relatively high
levels of TCE.
In 1982, the city of New
Brighton shut down six municipal
wells with the highest levels of
TCE. The city was able to use two
unaffected wells for part of its
water supply, while deepening
two previously contaminated
wells. EPA's Superfund program
also provided funds to treat other
contaminated wells. In addition,
the Army supplied bottled water
to six families living near TCAAP
whose private wells were con-
taminated.
In 1983, EPA funded an MPCA
investigation of area-wide ground
water contamination. A joint
EPA studies alternative supply techniques
Army begins soil treatment at TCAAP
> Interageney agreement signed by Army, EPA, and State
TCAAP treatment wefis operational
W Construction of municipal treatment plants begins
V
1 St. Anthony and New Brighton treatment plants open
m Site investigations completed on and off-base
Studies continue on TCAAP
1985
t986
1987
1988
1990
1991 1992
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Superfund At Work New Brighton Site, New Brighton, MN Winter 1994
EPA-MPCA plan to ensure safe
drinking water recommended
that St. Anthony monitor existing
water supplies, establish a water
conservation program, and
construct a temporary connection
to the nearby city of Roseville.
New Brighton Becomes a
Priority Site
In September 1983, the New
Brighton site was placed on the
National Priorities List (NPL), a
roster of uncontrolled or aban-
doned hazardous waste sites
requiring cleanup under the
Superfund program. In 1984,
when solvent concentrations rose
above safety standards, the
Minnesota Department of Health
advised St. Anthony to shut
down one well. Later that year,
St. Anthony was connected to
Roseville to increase its water
supply.
In 1985, EPA and MPCA
studied alternatives for providing
safe and permanent water sup-
plies to St. Anthony and New
Brighton. Completed in June
1986, the study recommended
that St. Anthony wells be treated
by a carbon filtration system to
remove contaminants, and that
New Brighton add a new deep
well to the current municipal
system.
TCAAP Cleanup Begins
Negotiations among officials of
EPA, the Army, and MPCA
began in 1985. In 1986, the Army
began treating soil at two of the
most heavily contaminated
TCAAP areas. Using a vapor
extraction system, air was drawn
through contaminated soil to filter
out VOCs. By the end of 1993, the
system had removed nearly
232,000 pounds of solvents and
the Army had incinerated more
than 1,400 cubic yards of soil
contaminated with PCBs.
In 1987, EPA, MPCA, and the
Army developed a ground water
treatment plan to cleanse and
contain ground water and to
prevent additional contamination
from flowing off site. Termed the
Boundary Ground Water Recov-
ery System (BGRS), 12 wells on
TCAAP property extract the
ground water which is pumped
to a tower where specialized
equipment removes contami-
nants. Treated water is then
discharged to an on-site basin.
A portion of this water is filtered
and used for drinking water by
TCAAP employees.
The Army installed five more
ground water extraction wells
down-gradient from contami-
nated areas later in 1987. Com-
bined with the BGRS, the addi-
tional extraction wells form the
TCAAP Ground Water Recovery
System (TGRS). The two systems
have treated over six billion
gallons of ground water and
removed an estimated 103,050
pounds of VOCs. The two sys-
tems will continue to run until
cleanup criteria are met.
In addition, the Army con-
structed an extensive ground
water monitoring system consist-
ing of more than 300 wells to
delineate and monitor the con-
taminant plumes. DoD submits to
EPA and MPCA an annual moni-
toring report based on data
collected from these wells.
Cooperative Efforts Ensure Safe
Drinking Water
While the Army was cleaning
up TCAAP's most polluted areas,
EPA focused on treatment of St.
Anthony's municipal water
supply. These efforts involved
construction of a $2.8 million
Granular Activated Carbon
(GAC) treatment plant to remove
contaminants from drinking
water. The St. Anthony treatment
plant began operating in Decem-
ber 1990, treating three million
gallons of water a day.
The Army also built a $4
million GAC treatment plant to
address contamination in New
Brighton's water supply and
reimbursed the city for costs
incurred in constructing deeper
wells. The New Brighton plant
began operating in June 1990,
treating four million gallons of
water a day and preventing
the need for drilling another
deep well.
continued on page 5
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Superfund At Work New Brighton Site, New Brighton, MN Winter 1994
Tainted
Ground Water
continued from page 4
In 1991, MPCA and the Army
completed off-base and on-base
investigations, respectively. In
1992 and 1993, EPA, MPCA, and
the Army agreed on remedies to
address remaining off-base
ground water contamination.
With municipal drinking water
supplies ensured, efforts are
currently under way to develop a
plan to clean up the rest of
TCAAP, including contamina-
tion of soil and surface water.
TCAAP: Safe Haven and a Code of Honor
Military training has to be
conducted away from popu-
lated areas and requires thou-
sands of acres of land. Heavy
vehicles, combat engagement
exercises, and testing of ad-
vanced weapon systems have
major environmental impacts
on vegetation cover and both
botanical and wildlife composi-
tion. Yet the actual disturbed
areas are in general only a
relative fraction of the total
number of acres on most
military installations, leaving
islands of wild lands virtually
undeveloped for years. Mili-
tary installations are frequently
the last bastions for native
prairies, endangered species,
and critical habitat. Without
military set-asides, urban
expansion would have con-
sumed these huge tracts of land
years ago.
TCAAP is one such army
installation where two-thirds of
the entire acreage is undisturbed
woodland, prairie and wetlands.
Although training exercises were
never conducted here, ammuni-
tions and weapons production have
put these wild areas at risk. The
Army has put considerable time
and effort into cleaning up TCAAP
and providing safe drinking water
for surrounding communities.
Cleanup of surface contamination
will ensure the integrity of the
ecosystem in Marsden and Sunfish
Lakes. Cleanup of contaminants in
the soil will allow for regrowth of
native botanical species support-
ing birds, deer, and raccoons.
The TCAAP refuge serves as a
unique, valuable, natural re-
source for Minnesotans, but is
endangered by metropolitan
growth. The federal facility
agreement with EPA and MPCA
serves as a deed of trust to
restore this small but diverse
haven for wildlife.
Tom Barounis, Remedial Project Manager for the New Brighton site, holds a green
snake, just one of hundreds of plant and animal species thriving at TCAAP.
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Region 5, Library (PL-12J)
B 77 West Jackson Boulevard. 12th Floor
Chicago, IL oUbU4-doyu
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Superfund At Work New Brighton Site, New Brighton, MN Winter 1994
Cleaning Up
Federal Facilities
The U.S. government currently
owns 126 sites on the NFL; this
number may increase to 400 in
the next few years. These sites
are DoD, Department of Energy,
or other federal agency property
and are generally quite large and
extensively contaminated, posing
unique challenges. Once a fed-
eral facility has been added to the
NPL, the DoD/DOE, EPA, and
the state negotiate a Federal
Facility Agreement (FFA) to
guide the Superfund cleanup
process.
First FFA Signed
EPA, DoD, and MPCA signed
a FFA in July 1987, the first such
agreement under the Superfund
program, requiring the Army to
conduct the New Brighton site
cleanup. The FFA marked the
beginning of greater cooperation
between federal and state agen-
cies in cleaning up federal facility
hazardous waste sites.
Success at New Brighton
Cooperation between federal,
state, and local governments has
been important in cleaning up
the New Brighton site. Under
Superfund's first Federal Facili-
ties Agreement, the U.S. Army
acted promptly to provide
drinking water to area residents
and build treatment plants to
decontaminate ground water.
The Army will ultimately fi-
nance $370 million in site
cleanup efforts.
EPA and MPCA staff worked
closely together to identify
contaminants and recommend
solutions for the site. St. An-
thony and New Brighton have
initiated water conservation
programs and developed plans
to construct long-term water
supplies. The City of Roseville
provided a temporary connec-
tion to help meet water needs
for neighbors in St. Anthony.
These cooperative efforts
have helped to clean up the
most costly hazardous waste
site in Minnesota and one
of the largest ground water
contamination areas in
the country.
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