United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Enforcement and
Compliance Assurance
(2201A)
EPA 520-F-96-003
Spring 1996
xv EPA Superfund At Work
Hazardous Waste Cleanup Efforts Nationwide
Love Canal
Site Profile
Site Description: A 3,200-foot-
long canal filled with chemical
wastes
Site Size: Original canal, 16 acres;
capped area, 40 acres; fenced area,
70 acres; Emergency Declaration
Area, 350 acres
Primary Contaminants: Heavy
metals, polycyclic aromatic hydro-
carbons, dioxin, votatite organic
compounds, and pesticides
Potential Range of Health Risks:
Neurotoxic effects; carcinogens
Nearby Population Affected:
70,000 people within 3 miles
Ecological Concerns: The
Niagara River and aquatic species
Year Listed on NPt: 1983
EPA Region: 2
State: New York
Congressional District: 32
Engineers take samples of black sludge from the basements of homes
closest to Love Canal.
Success in Brief
Catalyst for Environmental
Responsibility
Love Canal in Niagara Falls, New York was the first hazardous waste
site to gain national notoriety. Newspapers and television chronicled the
fear and anger as citizens learned that 22,000 tons of dangerous chemical
wastes buried 30 years earlier had begun to seep into backyards and
basements. A series of emergency orders evacuating homes captured the
nation's attention and raised public awareness across the U.S. Literally
thousands of hazardous waste sites marred the landscape from Maine to
California, some worse than Love Canal.
But public perception about the dangers at this site served as a catalyst
for elected officials to write the first federal legislation that authorized:
• the Superfund cleanup program directed by the U.S. Environmen-
tal Protection Agency (EPA); and
• effective enforcement to hold waste contributors accountable for
remediating sites, thus deterring further indiscriminate disposal of
hazardous wastes.
The new Superfund law provided the impetus for widespread
changes in the way manufacturers do business, including the emergence
of environmentally safe, "green" products and innovative cleanup
technologies. In the last 25 years, the stigma left at Love Canal has been
replaced with a national environ-
mental consciousness, a new
generation of activists, and con-
sumer demand for products from
renewable resources.
The Site Today
A permanent, high density
polyethylene-lined cap, a layer of
clay soil, and a leachate collection
and treatment system now contain
and monitor the chemicals in the
old canal. By now, 140 families
have moved into refurbished, once-
evacuated homes. Environmental
monitoring continues to ensure the
long-term safety of those living and
working in the area.
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Superfund At Work • Love Canal Site, Niagara Falls, NY • Spring 1996
The Love Canal Site is in
an urban area, 1/4 mile north
of the Niagara River in upstate
New York. Approximately
70,000 people live within three
miles of the site.
Love Canal was a 3,200 foot
channel built by William T.
Love in the late 1800s for hy-
droelectric purposes. Subse-
quently, his efforts were aban-
doned. Between 1942 and 1953,
approximately 22,000 tons of
drummed and liquid chemical
wastes were disposed of in the
abandoned Love Canal by
Hooker Chemical & Plastics
Corporation. Over time, bar-
rels storing some of the wastes
corroded and leaked their
hazardous contents into the
unlined canal.
A Site Snapshot
During the 1970s, unusually
high precipitation in the area
caused the water table within
the canal to rise, bringing
contaminants to the
surface to spread
laterally into the
basements of
nearby homes.
In 1978,
the New
York State
Depart-
ment of
Health
(NYSDOH) identified more than
80 chemicals in Love Canal and
adjacent soil, including acids,
volatile organic compounds,
pesticides, heavy metals, and
dioxins. These chemicals include
neurotoxins and known carcino-
Love Canal Site
Niagara Falls, NY
gens, depending on exposure.
Families were evacuated and
homes abandoned while
EPA and state officials
conducted emergency
actions. Finally, in
1988, the federal dis-
trict court found
Occidental Chemical
Corporation liable
for the govern-
ments' response
actions at
Love Canal.
Hooker had
been acquired by Occidental
which also was responsible for
other contaminated sites in the
area. Lawsuits and
countersuits over liability
burdened the courts for years.
Love Canal
Umitint
• Evacuees slay In hotete<
• State orders removal of surf ace wastes m
• Chemicals sampled in local basements
•99th St. School built next to canal ^
. •
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' Superfund At Work • Love Canal Site, Niagara Falls, NY • Spring 1996
In the late 1890s, an entrepre-
neur named William T. Love
planned to build a canal be-
tween the upper and lower
sections of the Niagara River to
provide cheap hydroelectric
power for a proposed model
industrial city. During construc-
tion, however, the alternating
current motor was perfected,
allowing transmission of elec-
tricity along long-distance
power lines. Industry no longer
needed to locate near a power
source, and so local banks with-
drew funding. The unfinished
canal - 80 feet wide, 10-15 feet
deep, 3,200 feet long, and dug in
clay layers - filled up with
water and was used by local
residents for recreation.
In 1905, Hooker Electrochemi-
cal Company opened a plant to
manufacture chlorine and
caustic soda. In 1941, the re-
named company began dump-
ing industrial wastes into the
undrained canal. The next year,
Hooker acquired title to the
property from Niagara Power
and Development Company.
Reportedly, swimming contin-
ued in the canal until the smell
grew offensive and some swim-
mers developed a skin rash.
During the 11-year period
ending in 1953, Hooker
dumped approximately 22,000
tons of waste in Love Canal.
Hooker Gives Property to
School Board
In 1953, Hooker sold the
property to the Board of Educa-
tion of the City of Niagara Falls
for one dollar, warning it of the
industrial wastes on the prop-
erty in the deed of sale.
In 1954, construction began
on a new school adjacent to the
canal. Many more companies
had moved to town, bringing an
economic boom. As more
families moved in for jobs,
plans to develop a school were
initiated. The school was ulti-
mately constructed on 99th
Street on property that abutted
the canal. The top of the canal
was covered with dirt, but its
integrity was compromised by
the construction of two roads
across the surface. Indeed, the
city subsequently allowed for
extensive development of the
entire area, not realizing the
potential danger. The back-
yards of some of the newly built
houses bordered the canal and
r
»llanatelp jsfind» and upgraded
\ «;S|p§t School demolished
x A CQfJlns ftsf Pi^el^sBBafen 01«e
*i:"^-|pd ctaek sediment diidged for dioxln
• Technical Beview Commiftee releases {MiWWsii^ study
• Oc^dentel sips consent ieariei^ ^eanup
Ongoing
-------
continued from page 3
various storm drains and sani-
tary sewage lines punctured the
canal's sidewalls.
Toxic Materials Seep into
Basements
The wonder chemicals of
modern society carried a hid-
den "price of progress" mani-
fested in health and environ-
mental effects. Beginning in the
mid-1960s, nearby residents
occasionally complained of
strong odors, and some notified
authorities of a buildup of black
sludge on their basement walls.
A few residents noticed this
same black sludge in their
sump pumps.
In the 1970s, higher than
normal precipitation caused the
water table to rise and chemi-
cals migrated from the canal to
nearby sewers and creeks.
Deteriorating drums rose to the
surface, exposed to the ele-
ments.
In September 1976, the New
York State Department of
Environmental Conservation
(NYSDEC) visited Love Canal
while investigating the sus-
pected discharge of Mirex (an
insecticide) by Hooker. That
fall, engineers collected sump
and sewer samples for Mirex
and PCB analysis and urged
city officials to conduct a
hydrogeological study.
Early in 1978, NYSDOH and
NYSDEC contacted EPA for
assistance. Additional sump
and air samples found signifi-
cant chemical contamination in
private homes adjacent to the
canal. The Commissioner of
Health directed local officials to
remove all exposed or visible
toxic waste and to fence off the
site.
Evacuations Begin
In late July 1978, further
sampling prompted the Com-
missioner of Health to recom-
mend that pregnant women and
children under two years of age
evacuate the area immediately
and that residents close off
basements and avoid consum-
ing home-grown produce. Two
weeks later, President Jimmy
Carter declared a state of emer-
gency, releasing federal aid to
relocate residents. An eight-
foot-high chainlink fence was
installed around Love Canal
and the housing areas identified
as Ring I and Ring II on the east
and west sides.
By September 1979, the
number of Love Canal residents
relocated into hotels had "stabi-
lized" to 425 people at a cost of
$7,500 per day for food and
lodging. NYSDEC and city
engineers worked throughout
the fall to install a 7,000-foot-
long barrier drainage and
containment system to halt
outward chemical migration.
That December, NYSDEC
engineers had constructed and
were operating a leachate col-
lection system and treatment
facility. The Department of
Justice also filed its first lawsuit
against Hooker for environmen-
tal damages and recovery of
emergency costs.
In May 1980, President Carter
identified the Emergency Decla-
ration Area (EDA), authorizing
$20 million to purchase homes.
More than 1,000 families were
eligible to be bought out within
a 10-block radius. The Federal
Emergency Management
Agency (FEMA) and state
officials relocated hundreds of
the affected families. Then in
July, NYSDEC engineers cov-
ered the canal with a 22-acre,
three-foot-thick clay cap to
reduce the amount of precipita-
tion entering the canal and to
reduce air emissions.
New Law Initiates
Superfund Program
In December 1980, Congress
enacted the Comprehensive
Environmental Response,
Compensation, and Liability
Act (CERCLA) to address
thousands of hazardous waste
sites nationwide. The law
established a "Superfund" Trust
Fund based on excise taxes from
crude oil and certain commer-
cially-produced chemicals.
Based on state referrals, EPA
began a National Priorities List
(NPL) of sites requiring com-
prehensive cleanup.
In 1981, EPA proposed to add
the Love Canal site to the NPL.
During this period, the 237 Ring
I and II homes were bulldozed.
In 1982, EPA and NYSDEC
extended and upgraded the clay
cap to prevent precipitation
from entering the canal. Engi-
neers also repaired the barrier
and leachate collection systems
and cleaned contaminated
sewers. In March 1983,
NYSDEC opened the first Pub-
lic Information Office adjacent
continued on page 5
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1 Superfund At Work • Love Canal Site, Niagara Falls, NY • Spring 1996
continued from page 4
to the fenced area and in June,
the 99th Street School came
down.
During the next few years,
Superfund and state teams
continued to clean up sewers
and dredge dioxin-contami-
nated creeks and other drainage
areas. In November 1984,
engineers placed a high-density
polyethylene liner (ironically,
one of those wonder chemicals)
over 40 acres of the site. The
liner was then covered by 18
inches of clean soil and seeded
for grass. EPA decontaminated
a total of 62,000 linear feet of
storm and sanitary sewers in
1986 and another 6,000 feet in
1987. An on-site facility was
constructed to dewater sewer
contaminants.
In 1989, EPA entered into an
agreement in which Hooker,
now renamed Occidental
Chemical Company, would
treat sewer and creek sedi-
ments. Cleanup crews removed
and transported most of the
waste materials to Occidental's
Niagara Falls facility for storage
prior to final treatment and
disposal. Occidental is cur-
rently investigating the possibil-
ity of shipping the waste for
final disposal outside New York
State.
EPA Seeks Cleanup Costs
Following years of legal
maneuvering, Occidental and
other parties were found liable
for the cleanup of the site in
February, 1988 under CERCLA
and the state nuisance law in
1989. Altogether, the
Superfund program, the State of
New York, and Occidental have
spent approximately $250
million (not including interest)
in cleanup and relocation costs
associated with Love Canal.
Adding in FEMA and non-
CERCLA EPA funds makes this
one of the most costly hazard-
ous waste cleanup efforts in the
nation.
In March 1994, a federal
judge found in favor of Occi-
dental, dismissing a case for
punitive damages and ruling
that the company had no mali-
cious intent when the 1940s
disposal took place. In July
1994, a cost recovery lawsuit
was settled between Occidental
and New York State in which
the court awarded New York
$98 million.
In December 1995, Occidental
agreed to pay $129 million plus
interest to resolve outstanding
EPA and FEMA claims for
previous remedial costs. Occi-
dental also agreed to pay
$375,000 for natural resources
damages and $497,000 for
future costs and other reim-
bursements. In addition, the
U.S. Army will pay $8 million
for their alleged contribution of
hazardous wastes during World
War II and the Korean Conflict.
'
,
final study results were i
pendeittly reviewed by ;'a
"
^
. sner
/, artel
contmmAm page 6
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Superfund At Work • Love Canal Site, Niagara Falls, NY
Spring 1996
continued from page 5
Since the majority of the
cleanup was completed and
certain areas declared habitable,
140 families moved back into
the EDA, now called Black
Creek Village. The area offered
individuals the opportunity to
purchase completely refur-
bished homes at affordable
prices.
The Neighborhood Today
The success of the cleanup
and neighborhood revitaliza-
tion hinged on EPA's ability to
effectively address all of the
real or perceived problems
facing the Niagara Falls com-
munity.
In February 1992, the federal
Department of Housing and
Urban Development agreed to
provide mortgage insurance on
these houses, discounted 15 to
20%, allowing families to pur-
chase homes in the revitalized
Love Canal neighborhoods.
Love Canal
When EPA first discovered Love Canal, the Superfund
program did noi exist and few people recognized the threat
of hazardous wastes in the environment As more sites
were discovered^ and the ^severity of the national problem
unfolded, jnifoJIc pressure and citizen outrage forced federal
and state agencies to take drastic measures. We have the
citizens of Love Canal to thank for playing a key role in
waking i£p the nation to an era of environmental steward-
ship, . . . - - • • "•':.-•'•• :: '-' '
Mew legislative authority cleaned up the area so that
families could move into rehabilitated homes. Manufactur-
ers in every state had to take responsibility for proper waste
disposal, ^recognizing the inherent dangers of chemical
wastes. l?dr that effort, a ne^ industry entered the market-
place fo design cleanup technologies and prevent pollution
in tt^Mnst pla£e The system of cap, barrier drain, leachate
collection and.. tireataeiit, arM long-term monitoring has
becdme a viable approach fer remediating sites.
A large portion of property
within the EDA east of 93rd
Street has been purchased by a
developer and is slated for
renewed economic develop-
ment with the proposed con-
struction of over 200 new
homes. The remaining areas of
the EDA were deemed suitable
for commercial use; thus most
of the EDA will be returned to
productive use.
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