Region 3 GPRA Baseline RCRA Corrective Action Facility University of Virginia D Chemistry Building, McCormick Road Charlottesville, VA 22901 Congressional District 5 EPA ID #: VAD000820712 Last Update Current Progress at the Site The University of Virginia (UVA) has completed the RCRA Corrective Action process in accordance with the EPA Region III Facility Lead Program. The requirements of this program include: •D A determination of the extent and sources of all releases of hazardous wastes or hazardous waste constituents at or from the Facility; •D Perform interim measures at the Facility, if warranted, to prevent or mitigate unacceptable threats to human health and the environment by: 1) controlling human exposures, and 2) controlling migration of any groundwater contamination at or from the Facility from releases of hazardous wastes or hazardous constituents; and, • D Conduct effective public involvement. Based on the initial facility wide assessment, the "Former Observatory Hill Debris Disposal Area," (O- Hill) was the only area identified for further study. EPA approved the investigation work plan designed for this area in the Spring of 2000 and the field work was completed in September 2000. The field work included the installation of six groundwater monitoring wells, the excavation of twelve exploratory backhoe test pits, three deep trenches and the collection of samples from groundwater, surface water, soils and sediments. The goal of this investigation is to determine if this former disposal area presents any long-term risks to human health or the environment. A final report documenting the results of the field investigation was submitted to EPA for review in October 2001. Based on the results documented in the final report EPA has concluded that there are no unacceptable risks to human health or the environment at the O-Hill area. On December 10, 2003, EPA issued a Statement of Basis explaining the findings of the field investigation. The 45 day public comment period ended on January 26, 2004 and no comments were received during that time. Based on this, EPA has determined that no further corrective action is necessary at this time and signed a Determination of Corrective Action Complete Without Controls on March 1, 2004. Site Description ------- The University of Virginia, founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, is a state-supported institution that supports research and scholarship in many fields. Its areas of strength include research in the humanities and programs in the biomedical, physical, and engineering sciences. The EPA utilized the National Corrective Action Priority System (NCAPS) model to evaluate the relative p riority of the University. The NC AP S model is based on four different exp osure p athway s: groundwater, surface water, air and on-site (direct contact with hazardous materials or contact with contaminated surface soils). Based upon the NCAPS model, the University ranked as a high priority facility. The NCAPS modeling results do not mean that the facility ranked as "high" will in fact, require large-scale remediation. In some cases, remediation may have already taken place under the State's jurisdiction or as a facility-lead. The investigation at UVA focuses on the O-Hill area as was noted in the NCAPS site assessment report. Site Responsibility RCRA Corrective Action activities at this facility are being conducted under the direction of EPA Region 3 with assistance from the State. The investigation activities were implemented in accordance with an EPA Facility Lead Agreement. Contaminants Inorganic constituents in groundwater/soil and semi-volatile organic compounds in soil were evaluated as potential contaminants of concern. Community Interaction UVA has established and operates a document repository for this project and communicates information regarding this project to the City of Charlottesville and the County of Albemarle via a cooperative task force (Planning and Coordination Council). The repository is located in the UVA Science and Engineering Library, Clark Hall, Charlottesville, Virginia. Government Contacts EPA Project Manager Mr. Russell Fish - 3WC23 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency - Region III 1650 Arch Street Philadelphia, PA 19103-2029 Phone:(215)814-3226 Email: fish.russell@epa.gov Ms. LeslieRomanchik Virginia Department of Environmental Quality ------- P.O. Box 10009 Richmond, VA 23240 Phone: (804) 698-4129 Email: laromanchi@deq.virginia.gov For more information about EPA's corrective action webpage, including Environmental Indicators, please visit our site at: www.epa.gov/ree3wcmd/correctiveaction.htm Facility Contact Mr. JeffSitler University of Virginia Environmental Health and Safety P.O. Box 3425 Charlottesville, VA 22903 Email: sitler@virginia.edu ------- |