5019 905R77013
Earthline Corporation Landfill Evaluation
Introduction
This report is an evaluation of the Earthline Corporation landfill
operated by the SCA Services, Inc. at Wilsonville, Illinois to determine
if it meets the criteria for chemical waste landfills used for the
disposal of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) as outlined in the rules
proposed by the Environmental Protection Agency under authority of
the Toxic Substances Control Act (P.L. 94-469) under Section 6(e) and
published in the May 24, 1977 issue of the Federal Register.
Attachment I contains biographical sketches of the individuals
involved in the evaluation of the site. The physical site evaluation
occurred on June 8, 1977.
Background
Earthline Corporation, a subsidiary of SCA Services, Inc. began
operating the landfill in Wilsonville, Illinois on November 15, 1976
after applying for and receiving a permit from the Illinois Environmental
Protection Agency (IEPA) to dispose of industrial/ha2ardous wastes.
After the landfill was in operation for approximately 6 months, the citizens of
Wilsonville became alarmed to learn that Earthline Corporation was
accepting "PCS wastes" and landfilling them at the Wilsonville disposal
site. Before opening the site, Earthline Corporation informed the
citizens of Kilsonville and the local elected officials by registered
letter and/or by an open house at the disposal site that the facility
U.S. Environmental Protection Agencjg
Region V, Library
230 South Dearborn Street
Chicago, Illinois 60604 '
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would be treating/storing/disposing of industrial residues (see
Attachment II for sample letter and list of recipients of the letter).
In addition, a newspaper article printed in the Illinois State Journal,
South Edition, approximately one week before the site opened indicated
specifically that "hazardous wastes" would be disposed of at the site
(see Attachment III). However the citizens of Wilsonville reportedly
indicated that they didn't know that these industrial residues included
materials such as PCB's (see Attachment IV for news release, Radio
T.V Reports, Inc. dated May 28, 1977). Consequently, the City of
Wilsonville has brought suit against Earthline Corporation to close
the disposal site.
Dr. Leo Eisel, Director of the Illinois EPA, requested by telephone
on June 3, 1977 that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, through
the Regional Office in Chicago, perform a technical evaluation of the
site for the disposal of hazardous wastes. As a result, a Technical
Evaluation Team (TET) was formed comprised of U.S. EPA personnel. In
addition, two representatives of the Illinois State Geological Survey
(ISGS) accompanied the TET and served as advisory personnel.
Due to the fact that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is in the
process of evaluating alternative regulations/guidelines for the treatment/
storage/disposal of hazardous wastes under the Solid Waste Disposal Act,
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as amended by the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 (P.L.94-580),
the TET believes that, at this time, it would be inappropriate to
perform an evaluation based on criteria which have been only partially
developed by the agency. The only criteria applicable to the Wilsonville
site that have been proposed by the Agency are the rules for marking and
disposal of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB). Therefore, this technical report
compares and relates the technical aspects of the facility for disposal
of PCB's to the EPA proposed regulations. (see Attachment V; proposed
regulation 42 Federal Register, (26574), May 24, 1977: Polychlorinated
Biphenyls (PCB's) Toxic Substances Control; Annex II).
General Description of the Disposal Site (see Attachment VI for site
design drawings)
The Earthline Corporation landfill site is located on a 130 acre
tract, approximately 55 miles northeast of St. Louis, Missouri, in
Macoupin county. The site is bordered on the east, west and south
by undeveloped land (forest/grassy plains area) and on the north by
the town of Wilsonville. The waste burial area is located 0.25 miles
(buffer zone) from the northern boundary of the site. Current waste
management activities are confined to trenches 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and
7 (trenches measure approximately 15 fee-t deep, 50 feet wide and
250 to 350 feet long) and an experimental sludge farming operation,
as indicated on the drawings.
The general geologic profile of the site, both as observed by
the TET at the disposal site and from information supplied by the
Illinois EPA, shows a surface layer of about 10 feet of loess, (wind-blown
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silt and clay material) underlain by 40 to 65 feet of till material that was
deposited during the glacial periods. The permeability studies that
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were conducted during site design measured a permeability of 10"° cm/sec
for the till material. In the till material, a thin sand layer is found
as reported by the Illinois EPA, ranging in thickness from a few inches
to approximately 2 feet depending on where the soil boring was made.
The sand layer (located 30 to 40 feet below the surface as indicated by
Illinois EPA personnel) contains some water but not all wells driven
into the sand layer produce water at the same rate (see boring logs in
Illinois EPA files for details). Additionally, the sand layer is reported
to be discontinuous, thus, there is no evidence that the sand layer
is connected with water bearing formations elsewhere.
The disposal trenches are excavated, as observed by the TET, into
this loess material so that the trench bottoms go only about 1 to 2 feet
into the glacial till. In addition, the depth of the trenches is
restricted to a fixed elevation above sea level (610 feet) as part of
the permit conditions, so that there will always be a minimum of 10 feet
of this very dense, low permeability glacial till between the bottom of
each trench and the sand layer. All trenches dug to date, as reported
by the Illinois EPA, have between 10 to 15 feet of till below them.
The site is also located above a former coal mine (approximately
300 feet below the surface) that was opened in the early 1900's and
closed in the 1950's. The potential for subsidence of the materials
above the abandoned mine operations is an issue. A team of geologists
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from the ISGS (Messrs. Steve Hunt, Paul DuMontelle and Keros Cartwright)
visited the site on May 27, 1977. The opinion of the geologists was
that the potential for problems from subsidence is negligible. (see
Attachment VII, letter dated July 13, 1977 from Keros Cartwright to Mrs.
Granger, for more detailed discussion).
During the mining operation, the process of cleaning the coal
extracted at the site generated a large gob pile (coal, shale, and clay)
which exists on the 130 acre tract leased by Earthline Corporation on
the outskirts of Wilsonville (see drawings for exact location of gob
pile). The gob pile is approximately 40 acres in area, and about 100
feet deep at the center. No reclamation procedures had been carried out
after the mine was closed and water passing through the gob pile has
been converted to acid mine drainage by oxidation of the pyrites in the
waste. As a consequence, three surface drainage channels observed by
the TET in the middle, eastern, and western side of the site are grossly
contaminated with acid mine drainage (red and yellow material with a pH
varying from 2 to 2.5).
The hazardous waste disposal site was designed to use the land
surrounding the gob pile. The excess soil from the trenches that are
filled with industrial residues is to be used gradually to cover the
surface of the gob pile. This procedure'is expected to retard entrance
of water into the waste coal materials and thus reduce the flow of
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contaminated waste into the surrounding drainage channels. It should
be noted that the sand layer has already been contaminated as indicated by
analysis of samples drawn from monitoring wells before the site was
opened which contained very high concentrations of sulfates and a TDS of
about 8000 to 10,000 mg/1 and that this contamination has two
possible sources. The first being drainage from the gob pile, however, the
TET believes that this is very unlikely due to the low permeability of the
glacial till. The more likely source of this contamination is from waters
that have migrated the vertical shaft of the old mining operation.
Monitoring of the site is performed via 14 monitoring wells (see
drawings for exact location of wells) along the perimeter of the property.
These wells are screened in the sand layer and are sampled quarterly by
a private laboratory (St. Louis Testing Laboratories, 2810 Clark, St. Louis,
Missouri). Test results are submitted to the Illinois EPA. (see Illinois
EPA files for quarterly analyses reports). Analyses being performed are
as follows:
a) Monitoring Wells 1 through 6: Total Dissolved Solids (TDS)
Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD)
Cadmium
Chromium (total)
Zinc
Arsenic \ One analysis is
Copper / performed on a
Cyanide \ rotating basis
Mercury / quarterly
Phenol/
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b) Monitoring Wells 7-12
Same as above. (These wells
will not be sampled until waste
management activities in this
area begin operation).
c) Monitoring Wells 13 and 14 IDS
COD
Oil
Water level reported
In addition to the monitoring wells, Earthline Corporation collects
water samples from surface channels from three monitoring points indicated
in the drawings. These analyses are also performed by St. Louis Testing
Laboratories and are submitted to the Illinois EPA on a quarterly basis.
(see Illinois EPA analyses reports). Analyses being performed are as
follows:
a) MP 1 and 2: TDS
COD
b) MP 3: TDS
COD
Oil
Analyses to date indicate no change in the amounts or types of
contaminants compared to those measured from samples taken before the
site began accepting wastes. This indicates no measurable contamination
is taking place (see Attachment VIII for latest analysis of monitoring points)
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Operating Procedures
(A) Waste Burial Procedures
Those firms wishing to utilize Earthline Services must provide
the company with a description of each waste (including a chemical
analysis and the quantity of waste to be managed). Earthline Corporation
then submits a supplemental application to the Illinois EPA and requests
that the waste be added to the permit. Thus, the Illinois EPA exercises
control over which wastes the facility may handle. Up to the present
time, Earthline Corporation has received approximately 180 supplemental
permits from the Illinois EPA to handle industrial residues. A partial
list of such wastes includes: paint sludges, zinc sludge, 2-4-D herbicide,
solid cyanides, PCB's and sewage sludge containing hexachlorocyclopentadiene.
Earthline Corporation also handles acid and caustic wastes, but requires
that these wastes be neutralized by the generator before they can be
accepted by the facility.
Approximately ninety-five percent of the industrial/hazardous
wastes to date have been received in 55 gallon drums and have been
disposed of in the 7 trenches currently in operation. The remaining
five percent are received in double-wall paper bags and disposed of on
pallets in the trenches. Waste containing drums are lowered into the
trench and stacked two high, face to face and then covered at the end of
each working day. After each trench has been completely filled, the
trench is covered with 2 feet of clay and 1 foot of topsoil which is
gently sloped to diminish any rain water infiltration. All PCB xvrastes
disposed of at Earthline have been containerized in 55 gallon drums before
they were placed in the trench; in addition, Earthline personnel report
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that cyanide wastes have been further segregated by enclosing these
drums in a clay and lime coated cell constructed within the trench.
Also, incompatible wastes are segregated during the disposal operation.
It is reported that PCS wastes are not placed in trenches with solvent
bearing wastes; PCS wastes have been containerized and buried in trenches
containing the materials listed in Attachment IX (see Attachment IX for
inventory of wastes placed in each trench). The TET can not make a
complete evaluation concerning compatibility from the inventory supplied
by Earthline Corporation.
In addition, wastes are routinely checked to determine whether
means other than disposal are viable. For example, procedures exist
so that if wastes containing 75% or more of organic solvent are received
for disposal, Earthline directs the waste to another facility having the
capability to distill and recover the solvent or to a facility that can
incinerate the waste. To date, wastes received for disposal have contained
50% or less solvent. At the present time, trenches number 2, 3, and 4
are completely filled and covered, 3 trenches are currently being utilized
(trenches number 5, 6, and 7) and trench number 1 is empty.
(B) Sludge Farming Operation
The experimental sludge farming operation has not yet been initiated
because Earthline has not found a waste suitable for landspreading
(i.e., all oily sludges analyzed to date contained PCB's or some other
similar material which the company determined to be unsuitable for
landspreading). The landspreading process can be described as a biodegradation
operation. Wastes earmarked for the sludge farming operation will
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be spread over 1/4 the site and disked into the soil. Each day a new
section of the site will be utilized until all 4 quarters had been
"farmed". The soil will be disked each day until the waste is
sufficiently degraded (the time for this degradation is unknown).
At this point, the company would spread some additional sludge.
(C) On-Site Quality Control
If a waste is accepted and permitted by the Illinois EPA for
disposal at Wilsonville, the waste is delivered to Earthline in
sealed containers or double-wall paper bags, a requirement of Earthline
Corporation. When the waste is first received, an analysis is performed
on each shipment to check the composition of the waste with that specified
in the permit. If the waste received is different from the permit
specifications, Earthline sends the waste back to the generator (no
wastes to date, as indicated by Earthline Corporation, have been sent
back for this reason). Subsequent wastes that are accepted from a
generator under the sane Illinois EPA permit are randomly analyzed to
"spot check" the composition of the waste.
Most of the analyses are performed at Earthline's own laboratory
facility. The laboratory is equipped with an Atomic Absorption
Spectrophotometer (AA) unit, a pH meter, a conductivity meter and
a visible light spectrophotoraeter. The laboratory is not equipped
with a gas chromatograph (GC) for analyzing organic compounds. All
GC work is sent to Chemtrol in Model City, N.Y. for analysis. Chemtrol
is a hazardous waste treatment and disposal facility which is also a
subsidiary of SCA Services, Inc., Earthline's parent company.
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Field Observations
The following information was gathered during the visit by the TET
to Earthline Corporation's facility on June 8, 1977 in Wilsonville, Illinois.
Three disposal trenches were open; two were excavated to their final depth
and the third was excavated only partially into the loess (not into the till
material). Of the trenches which had been completely excavated, one had
been open for approximately 6 weeks and the other for approximately 3
weeks. In the trench that had been open for 6 weeks, water had collected
in one corner, probably due to rainwater or to capillary water oozing
out of the clay. The same profile was seen in both of the completed
trenches. The loess material extended from the surface to the bottom of
the trench at which point the glacial till was exposed. Both the loess
and the glacial till were quite dense, had very few pores or root holes,
and were essentially massive. In some places, where pieces of the till
had been disrupted by a bulldozer, it could be seen that the peds were
several feet across. There was a thin layer of soil apparent at the top
of the loess. This was the modern soil, approximately one to two feet
deep, which had numerous roots and pores and had a definite finer structure.
At the intersection of the loess and the till (at the bottom of the
trenches) there was a colluvial layer 9 inches to a foot thick. This
material contained some larger particles, small stones and gravels, but
not much sand. It had some pores, old root holes, and had some structure.
It was concluded that this was probably an example of buried soil.
There was likely a period of time (after the glaciers had retreated)
during which this colluvium was exposed to weathering and biological
activity and developed as a soil. These differences in the structure
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of the till and the colluvium suggest that their permeabilities
may be different (as much as an order of magnitude). In the permit
»Q
application, the permeability for the till was given as 10" cm/sec.
No information is available to the TET on the permeability of the
colluvium or of the loess (see additional discussion under Lateral
Movement, page 19, for more information).
In the middle, the eastern, and on the western side of the site,
there are drainage channels which receive most of the surface runoff
from the site. These channels can be classed as intermittent streams.
Much of the vegetation in the surface drainage channels around the site
has been killed, apparently by the acid mine drainage from the gob
pile.
The gob pile, made up of shale, coal, and a little fine earth
material has a very large particle size ranging from fine sand to
cobbles. Two seeps were identified coming from the pile partway
up the sides, on the west side and on the east side. These seeps
are a reddish color liquid, typical of acid mine drainage. Since
the gob pile is exposed to precipitation and is much more permeable,
than the loess on which it rests, it is likely that there is a groundwater
mound (a water table perched on top of the loess) built up into the
gob pile since the TET observed several seeps flowing from the sides
of the mound. Accordingly, there is a possibility that the small
amount of water observed in one of the trenches might be a local
raising of the water table due to the influence of this groundwater
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mound under the gob pile. The surface drainage and the groundwater
drainage from the site are to the south away from the town of
Wilsonville. Additionally, it should be noted that the City of Wilsonville's
water supply is pumped from 5 miles north.
Much of the earth material that has been excavated to construct
the trenches has already been placed around the edges of the gob pile.
This reclamation treatment will eventually reduce the entrance of water
into the gob pile and should reduce the acid mine drainage.
The present trenches are located about 60 feet from the nearest
drainage channel and approximately one hundred feet from the boundary of
the property. For full site development, the company plans, if permitted
by the Illinois EPA, to establish trenches so as to maintain a buffer
of 50 feet between a trench and the boundary of the property. The
site, at the time of the visit, was in good order and the site
housekeeping procedures appear adequate.
DATA INTERPRETATION
The time required for water to move downward through the soil
from the bottom of a disposal trench to the top of any water-bearing
layer under the trench is called the travel time or containment time.
This is a commonly used criterion for judging the suitability of
soils for a disposal site. The presumption is that soils with long
travel times are best for disposal activities. Although it is true
that a soil with a longer travel time would be better than one with a
shorter travel time, it does not follow that a soil with a short
travel time is automatically unsuitable. Several items that affect
the significance of travel time are discussed below.
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First, there are two rates of movement, the Darcian velocity and
the pore water velocity, that may be used to calculate a travel time
for fluids through a soil. Travel times calculated with the Darcian
velocity will appear to be longer than travel times calculated with the pore
water velocity. However, when these different travel times are used to calculate
the time required for a specific quantity of liquid (e.g. quart, gallon,
liter) to pass through the soil, the answer will be the same regardless
of which travel time is used. The method of calculating travel times
and of using them to determine what volume of liquid will pass through
the soil in a given time are described in Attachment X.
Thus, one problem with the use of travel time (calculated from
either rate of movement) as the primary basis for judging a soil's
suitability is that it provides no direct information about the
quantity of fluid transported in a given period of time nor does it
provide any information about how much contaminated fluid must reach
the underlying waters before changes in water quality will be detectable
or before the water will become unsuitable for use.
Another problem with using travel time as the basis for judging
the safety of a particular location is that travel times are calculated
assuming the soil is entirely saturated. This is not usually the
case at the time the disposal trench is closed. The rate at which
water moves through unsaturated soil is much less than the rate of
movement in a saturated soil. It is difficult to calculate how long
it will take for the soil under the disposal trenches to reach saturation
but it can be said with certainty that, because of the time for wetting
the soil and the lower rate of water movement in unsaturated soil, the
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time required for the first liquid from the trenches to reach the
underlying sand layer will be longer than the calculated travel time.
Finally, the travel time is only the time for liquids to move;
as discussed below, solutes move more slowly through soil than the
liquids in which they are dissolved. Solutes interact more strongly
with fine textured (clay and silt) soils than with coarse textured
(sandy) soils. Hence, a short travel time would be more significant
in a sandy soil than in a finer textured one.
The Illinois EPA has calculated the travel time from the bottom
of the trenches to the underlying sand layer to be 600 years using
the Darcian flow velocity. Data on the porosity of the soil underlying
the site is not available so the travel time based on pore water velocity
cannot be calculated.
A porosity of 0.25 would be within the range of porosities seen
in similar soil materials elsewhere. Assuming this value, the pore
water velocity would be about 4 times greater than the Darcian velocity
and the travel time would be 150 years. Using either travel time
(150 or 600 years) the amount of liquid passing out of a trench in a
year would equal a layer 0.3 inches deep. See Attachment X for a
description of how this calculation is performed. This 0.3 inch deep
layer of fluid would be passing into the 24 inch deep sand layer containing
water already heavily contaminated by acid mine drainage.
In connection with this discussion of vertical travel times,
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two points are noted. First, the Illinois EPA has assumed a worst
case condition (trenches full of water) in making their calculation
and, second, soluble contaminants will take longer to travel a given
distance than will the fluid in which they are dissolved.
The worst case condition (trenches full of liquid) assumes a
maximum driving force (hydraulic gradient) for downward water movement
through the soil and gives a minimum travel time. In the files, the
soils data for the site shows the pieziometric surface ranging from
a few feet above the bottom of the trenches to a few feet below the
bottom of the trenches. This indicates that the water in the sand
layer is under pressure and this pressure will tend to counteract the
downward movement of fluids from the trenches. If there were only
a foot or two of fluid in the trench instead of the 15 feet assumed
by Illinois EPA calculations, the driving force for water movement
would be decreased and the travel time longer. Site design and operation
(surface water diversion, capping and grading of trenches) are aimed
at keeping the trenches dry and it is the opinion of the TET that these
measures, if properly executed, will greatly reduce the amount of water
entering the trenches. To the extent that these procedures keep the
trenches from completely filling with liquid, the actual liquid travel
time will be longer than the travel time calculated by the Illinois
EPA.
To demonstrate the magnitude of the effect, if the pieziometric
surface were down at the sand layer (no pressure on the water in the
sand layer) instead of near the surface and if the trench were assumed
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to have no liquid in it instead of the 15 feet in the Illinois EPA
calculations, then the driving force would be reduced by 50% and the
travel time (Darcian) would be increased to 1200 years. Since the
pieziometric surface is near the soil surface, the percentage decrease
in the driving force resulting from an empty trench would be much greater
than 50% and the resulting Darcian travel time will likely be much
greater than 1200 years.
Because solutes interact with soil, they travel through soil at
a lesser rate than the fluid in which they are dissolved. Even very
mobile contaminants such as sodium, selenium, and cyanide travel at only
1/2 to 3/4 the rate of the fluid while the heavy metal contaminants
such as lead, zinc, and cadmium travel 1/10 to 1/15 or less of the
fluid travel rate. Thus, compared to movement of water alone, mobile
contaminants will take 1 1/3 to 2 times longer to travel a given distance
and other contaminants will take 10 to 15 times longer to travel a
given distance.
Since the contaminant travel factors in the previous paragraph
were estimated from the number of pore volumes of water that passed
through a soil column before the contaminants appeared in the column
effluent, travel time for the contaminant from it should be based on
the pore water veolcity. To estimate the time for the first arrival
of contaminated water at the sand layer, multiply the pore water travel
time by the factor, from the previous paragraph, for the type of
contaminant under consideration. The travel time of mobile contaminants
would be 200 to 600 years, depending on the contaminant and on the depth
of water in the trench, and 1500 to 4500 years for the less mobile
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contaminants, depending again on the contaminant and of course, on the
depth of water in the trench (see Attachment XI). The smaller of
each pair of figures assumes the trench full of water; the larger
of each pair of figures assumes no water in the trench and the
pieziometric surface at the sand layer. The closer the pieziometric
surface is to the soil surface, the less will be the driving force and
the greater will be the upper limits for these travel times.
The first arrival of contaminated water at the sand layer will not
be the same as the beginning of detectable contamination. In labora-
tory studies with similar soil materials, the concentration of contaminants
in the first effluents from soil columns was quite low because the solutes
have been largely held by the soil. The concentration gradually
increases over a period of time, finally reaching the same concentration
as in the fluid being applied to the column. Similarly, in the field,
the first contaminants reaching the sand layer will be in very low
concentrations and, because of the low permeability of the till, the
amount of fluid in a given time will be small. The figure of 0.3
inches/year, calculated earlier, was based on the assumption that the
trenches were full of water. If the trenches are empty, this figure
will be reduced at least to 0.15 inches per year and could be much less
if the pieziometric surface is near the soil surface. Thus, it will
require some time more than the travel time (data is not available to
calculate how long) for enough contaminants to be transported into the
sand layer to raise the concentration in the sand layer to detectable
levels.
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Data to support this opinion are found in papers by Griffin et
al. - "Attenuation of Pollutants by Clay Minerals" Environmental Geology
Notes No. 78 and 79, Illinois State Geological Survey, 1976 and 1977.
See also a draft final report by J. Gibb et al. from the Illinois State
Water Survey for Grant R803216 from the U.S. EPA Municipal Environmental
Research Laboratory in Cincinnati, Ohio, entitled "Field Verification of
Hazardous Waste Migration from Disposal Sites." This latter study found
that over a period of 100 years and for contaminants from very concentrated
sources, movement through soil materials similar to those at Wilsonville
was slight.
(B) PCS Migration
If PCB's continue to be segregated from solvents, the PCB's will be
nearly immobile. PCB travel times will be at least 10 to 100 times
longer than even the least mobile heavy metals. Work by Griffin et al.
has shown that PCB's are so strongly sorbed by soil materials that they
are immobile, even in coarse sand, when leached with water or with
municipal landfill leachate. Solvents however, such as carbon tetrachloride,
methylene chloride, methanol or acetone cause PCB's to be highly
mobile in any soil material (see Attachment XII, letter dated June 10,
1977 from R.A. Griffin to M.A. Straus and the report entitled "Attenuation
of PCB's by Soil Materials and Char Wastes" by Griffin et al.).
(C) Lateral Movement
No data were available for the permeability of the loess or the
colluvium. Based on experience with similar soil materials elsewhere in
Illinois, Griffin and Lindorff estimate the permeability of the loess
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—7 —8
at 10 to 10 cm/sec and the permeability of the collumium in the
-6 o
range of 10 to 10 cm/sec. The fact that the permeabilities
of the colluvium and the loess could be less than the till underlying
the site suggests the possibility of lateral movement. Liquids
from the trenches could possibly move laterally to the surface drainage
channels. However, the distance from the trenches to the nearest
drainage channel is greater than 4 times the distance from the bottom
of the trench to the sand layer suggesting that lateral travel times
would be comparable to the vertical travel times even if there were
permeability differences. Note also that the material of potentially
highest permeability (the colluvium) occupies a very small amount of
the interior surface area of the trench. To illustrate this, assume
that a trench is 15 feet deep, 50 feet wide and 300 feet long. The
geologic profile at this location shows loess extending from the surface
down to 11 feet, colluvium from 11 feet to 13.5 feet, and glacial till
below 13.5 feet. Of this surface area, 16,750 square feet are glacial
till, 7,700 square feet are loess and 1,050 square feet are colluvium.
Thus, the amount of fluid that could flow through the colluvium, even
if it has a greater permeability, would be likely to be small in comparison
to the amount of fluid passing into the other two materials, the loess
and the glacial till, with their much greater exposure of surface area.
If fluids did move laterally from the trenches, the surface drainage
channels would be the areas affected. The surface drainage channels
are already heavily polluted by acid mine drainage from the gob pile
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and the vegetation on both sides has been killed. Continuous
sampling of the drainage channels will identify if lateral movement occurs.
The interceptor drains around the gob pile appear to be catching
most of the surface runoff and internal drainage from the gob pile.
There may be some interaction between the groundwater mound if present
in the gob pile and the water level in the trenches but not enough
information is available at present to adequately assess this
possibility.
Comparison of the Wilsonville Site With the Requirements of the
Proposed Regulations for PCS Disposal
The comparison of the disposal site characteristics with those
specified for chemical waste landfills in the proposed regulations
for PCB disposal is listed below using the numbering system in
paragraph (b) of Section 761.41 of the proposed regulations. It must be
kept firmly in mind that the subject regulations are only in a state of
proposal and are therefore subject to change based on new information. A
detailed analysis of the significance of the differences between the
Wilsonville site characteristics and characteristics required by
the proposed regulations is discussed at the end of this section.
(1) Soils
(i) In-place soil thickness is required to be 4 feet
or a compacted soil liner thickness of 3 feet:
All the trenches excavated to date have at least 10 to 15 feet
of in-place soil below them. The Illinois EPA operating permit
requires a minimum of 10 feet of in-place soil.
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(ii) The permeability is required to be 10 cm/sec or less;
The permeability values measured in the till and reported
in the permit application at the site were in the range
_Q _g
3 x 10 to 8 x 10 cm/sec. Permeabilities of the loess
and colluvium, through which the trenches are excavated
are not known. The loess is estimated to be 10 or
less while there is a possibility that the colluvium
could have a permeability greater than 10~ (see
discussion on Lateral Movement, page 19) .
(iii) The percent of soil passing a No. 200 sieve shall
be greater than or equal to 30: The percentages for
soil samples taken from the site were greater than
45 as reported in the permit application.
(iv) The liquid limit shall be greater than or equal to 30:
Liquid limit was not measured for soils at the site.
(v) Plasticity index shall be greater than or equal to 15:
Plasticity index was not measured for soils at the site.
(vi) Artificial liner thickness: Not applicable.
(2) Hydrology
Above the historical high groundwater table; Data were not
available on the historical groundwater -table elevations in the area.
The bottom of the landfill is above the current groundwater table.
Floodplains, shorelands, and groundwater recharge areas shall
be avoided: There are none in the area.
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23
There shall be no hydraulic connection between the site and
standing or flowing surface water: The TET found no evidence of a
hydraulic connection between the site and standing or flowing surface
water.
The site shall have monitoring wells, leachate collection and
shall be 50 feet from the nearest groundwater: There are 14 monitoring
wells installed at the site and no leachate collection system. The
sand layer, 30 to 40 feet below the site contains some water.
(3) Flood Protection
No data were available but it is the opinion of the TET that
the site is well above the 100 year floodwater elevation. Hence,
subparagraph (ii) applies.
(ii) Structures capable of diverting all of the surface water
runoff from a 24 hour, 25 year storm shall be provided;
The only diversion structures on the site are the interceptor
drainage channels around the gob pile. The design capacity
of these structures are not known, however, they are placed so a's
to intercept all surface water that might drain toward
the trenches. It was also indicated that both the
general disposal area and each individual trench have been
bermed so as to divert any surface water runoff.
«
(4) Topography
The landfill site shall be located in an area of low to moderate
relief to minimize erosion and to help prevent landslides or slumping:
The landfill is located in an area of low relief. The loess, into
which the trenches are excavated is quite stable. Cuts for road and rail-
road right-of-ways in the area remain stable for long periods of time
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without any control measures. During the short period that each trench
will remain open no slumping or erosion is likely; the land surface
around the site shows no evidence of erosion.
(5) Monitoring Systems
(i) Water Sampling
(a) The ground and surface water from the disposal site area
shall be sampled for use as baseline operations:
Samples were taken and analyzed from the surface drainage
channels and the 14 monitoring wells around the site
before it was opened.
(b) and (c) Defined water sources shall be sampled monthly during
operation and at six month intervals after closure:
Neither the surface water nor the groundwater is used
on the site in Wilsonville. Wilsonville receives their
water supply from a resevoir 5 miles north. Monitoring
wells and surface streams are analyzed quarterly by a
private laboratory. The Illinois EPA also reported that
they will randomly take samples and analyze the monitoring
wells approximately twice a year. Requirements for
post-closure sampling include a quarterly analysis by
Earthline Corporation for 3 years after site closure.
After this time, the State may monitor the site periodically.
(ii) Groundwater monitoring wells
(a) If underlaying earth materials are homogenous, impermeable
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25
and uniformly sloping in one direction, only three
sampling points shall be. necessary, on a line through
the center of the site parallel to the direction
of the groundwater gradient: The proposed rules do
not specify the number of sampling points required if
the earth materials do not meet the requirements of
the rules. The TET considers that the 14 groundwater
and the 3 surface water sampling points around the site
are sufficient to detect any contamination of the sand
layer or of the surface drainage channels. Additional
groundwater sampling points screened in the colluvium
would be desirable as an added precaution.
(b) Monitoring wells shall be cased, the annular space
backfilled with Portland cement, and the well opening
at the surface covered with a removable cap: The monitoring
wells at the site meet all these requirements as reported
by Illinois EPA personnel (the wells are slotted to receive
water samples in the sand lense).
One well volume shall be pumped out before sampling
and the discharge treated or recycled to the landfill:
The wells are sampled with a bailer; no provisions are
made for treating or recycling the discharge.
(iii) Water Analysis
Water analysis and sampling procedures shall be as
specified in 40 CFR Part 136 as amended in 41 FR
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26
52779 of December 1, 1976 and records shall be maintained
as specified in Annex VI of the proposed rules for
PCS disposal: Illinois EPA requires that sampling and
analysis be conducted in accordance with ASTM standard
procedures. These procedures are essentially the same
as those required by the proposed rules. Records are
not being maintained as specified in Annex VI. However,
the TET is of the opinion that the record maintenance
requirements imposed by the Illinois EPA are among the
most advanced in the United States and that these records
will make it possible, at some time in the future, to
determine the type of PCB waste, the generator, and the
location of the wastes in the trench. The
containerization of the wastes and recording of their
location in the trenches is done so that it will
be possible to retrieve any waste if it becomes
feasible to recover or re-use. Thus, it would be possible
to retrieve wastes if it was later determined that they
have been placed with incompatible wastes or that more
stringent disposal protection was required.
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27
The proposed rules under Annex II specify analysis
for the following parameters:
(a) PCB's
(b) pH
(c) Specific conductance
9 (d) Chlorinated organics
These parameters are not included among the many for
which water samples from the site are analyzed. IDS
is one of the analyses required by the Illinois EPA.
Although this is not the same as specific conductance
analysis required by the proposed rules, it does
provide related information (see the general description
of the site and monitoring requirements earlier in this
report).
(6) Leachate Collection
A leachate collection monitoring system shall be installed beneath
the chemical waste landfill; No leachate collection system is required
by the Illinois EPA for the site and none is installed.
(7) Chemical Waste Landfill Operations
(±) PCB's shall be placed in the landfill in a manner that will
prevent damage to containers or articles and shall be segregated
from incompatible wastes during handling and disposal;
At the site, containers are lifted into the trenches as
reported by Earthline personnel by a special set of hooks that
hold 4 drums, upright, at one time. It is the opinion of
the TET that this arrangement prevents damage during lifting
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28
and stacking of the drums. The waste segregation practices at the
site appear to be satisfactory, based on current information about
the migration behavior of PCB's (additional information concerning
the composition and form of the waste is needed before a
complete compatibility analysis is performed).
(ii) An operations plan shall be developed and submitted...:
An operations plan for the site is part of the permit issued
by the Illinois EPA. The plan covers the topics required
by this subparagraph of the proposed rules.
(iii) Records maintained for PCB disposal shall include the 3-
dimensional burial coordinates and other details as specified
in Annex VI of the proposed rules; The location of the PCB
wastes in each trench is recorded. For comments on the Annex
VI requirements, see the discussion, in this report, of
subparagraph (5) (iii) - Water Analysis.
(8) Supporting Facilities
(i) A six foot fence, wall, or similar device shall be provided
around the site; The site has a seven foot cyclone chain
link fence topped by a 3-strand, inclined section of barbed
wire as observed by the TET.
(ii) Roads shall be maintained to and on the site which are
adequate to operate and maintain the site without causing
-------
29
safety or nuisance problems or hazardous conditions: The
TET is of the opinion that the roads on the site meet this
requirement. Because all wastes are brought to the site in
sealed containers, the TET is of the opinion that hazardous
conditions are not created to the residents of Wilsonville.
It is noted that the route to the gate of the site passes down
the main street (Wilson Ave.) of Wilsonville. Mr. Pete Dunlop,
President of Earthline Corporation indicated that an informal
agreement was reached with the former mayor to cooperate with
the Village of Wilsonville in the maintenance of Wilson Ave.
However, it seems clear to the TET and Earthline Corporation
that the potential for problems, if any, would be decreased by
a different routing of the access road to the site.
Earthline Corporation is reportedly planning to build another
access road around the Village of Wilsonville within 8 to
12 months.
(iii) The site shall be operated and maintained in a manner to
prevent safety problems or hazardous conditions resulting
from spilled liquids and windblown materials; The TET is
of the opinion that the site operation procedures meet this
requirement.
Summary
The paragraphs of the proposed PCB rules for which the Wilsonville
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30
site is in conflict or for which there is insufficient information
to determine whether it complies are as follows:
(1) (ii) Permeability of loess and colluvium not known
(1) (iv) Liquid limit of soils not known
(1)(v) Plasiticity index of soils not known
(2) Depth of groundwater
(3) (ii) Design capacity of the interceptor drain around the
gob pile not known
(5)(ii)(b) Sampling procedures for monitoring wells
(5) (iii) Record maintenance as per Annex VI
Parameters to be analyzed in water samples
(6) Leachate collection system
As discussed previously in this report:
1) The possibility that the loess and the colluvium may have
permeabilities greater than the till is offset by the much
greater distance that the liquids must travel laterally through
these materials before reaching waters that could be impacted.
2) The liquid limit and plasticity index are measures of the physical
properties of soils. Field observations by the TET and discussions
with other people knowledgeable about soil physical properties
(Mr. Norbert Schomaker, Municipal Environmental Research Laboratory,
U.S. EPA) suggest that the liquid limit and plasticity index for
the Wilsonville soils will be satisfactory and that the physical
properties of the soils at the site are suitable for the practices
employed.
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31
3) The site does not meet the requirement with respect to the proposed
PCS regulations that ground water be greater than 50 feet below
the site. However, the TET notes that the sand layer, 30 to
40 feet below the site contains only a small amount
of water, this water is already polluted with acid mine drainage,
and there is no evidence that this sand layer is connected with
water bearing formations elsewhere. Additionally, the 10 to 15
feet of soil material between the bottom of the trenches and the sand
layer is fine textured and has a very low permeability.
4) It is the opinion of the TET that the drainage channel around the
gob pile will prevent surface water movement into the trenches;
if the design capacity does not meet the proposed rules, the
interceptor can readily be modified.
5) The TET is of the opinion that the well sampling procedures,
though not fully in accordance with the proposed rules, can
be easily modified to comply with the proposed rules described
in the PCS disposal regulations.
6) Due to the small volumes of water withdrawn from the monitoring wells
and the fact that there are no differences from background water
quality, the requirement, in the proposed rules for treatment
or recycling of discharge from the wells can be modified so as
to place the water back in one of the trenches.
7) Although the site records are not maintained as per Annex VI of the
proposed PCS regulations, the record maintenance requirements of the
Illinois EPA appear to satisfy the intent, if not the specifications,
of Annex VI.
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32
8) The TET is of the opinion that monitoring samples from the site
should be analyzed for major contaminants (i.e., PCBs, pH, specific
conductance and chlorinated organics) in the wastes deposited at
the site.
9) The combination of soil thickness and permeability at the Wilsonville
site offers considerably more protection than the combination of
soil thickness and permeability specified in the proposed PCS
regulations. Consequently, the TET is of the opinion that the
absence of a leachate collection system does not make the site
unsafe for disposal of PCBs.
Conclusion
In evaluating Earthline Corporation's landfill in Wilsonville,
Illinois for the disposal of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), it is the
opinion of the TET after considering the design and operational information
on the Wilsonville site that it is a well-designed, secure landfill which
provides disposal by environmentally acceptable methods and consequently,
believe that the facility is capable of managing PCBs. More specifically,
the following points are noted:
1) The glacial till which lies under the site is quite dense and
essentially massive (permeability 10~° cm/sec).
2) The potential for mine subsidence under the site as reported by
the TSGS is negligible.
3) The 14 ground water and the 3 surface water sampling points around
the site are sufficient to detect any contamination of the sand
-------
33
layer or of the surface drainage channels (analyses to date indicate
no change in the amounts or types of contaminants compared to
those measured from samples taken before the site began accepting
waste).
4) The operation of the site, as demonstrated to the TET considers
those precautions necessary to assure that both the public and the
environment are protected.
5) The site, at the time of the visit, was in good order and the site
housekeeping procedures appear adequate.
6) The segregation of PCBs from solvents as practiced by Earthline
Corporation will cause the PCBs to be nearly immobile (PCB travel
times will be at least 10 to 100 times longer than even the least
mobile heavy metals).
In addition, Earthline Corporation in the operation of the site
is alleviating the acid mine drainage problem which has already polluted
the surrounding streams. Much of the earth material that has been
excavated to construct the trenches has already been placed around the
edges of the gob pile. This reclamation treatment will eventually reduce
the entrance of water into the gob pile and reduce the acid mine drainage.
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Attachment I
Biographical Sketches
Karl Klepitsch, Chief, Waste Management Branch, Air and Hazardous
Materials Division, EPA Region V has a B.S. in Civil Engineering
from the University of Illinois and was designated as the lead
for the technical evaluation team (TET).
Matthew A. Straus, an engineer with the Hazardous Waste Management
Division, Office of Solid Waste, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
has a B.S. in Civil Engineering from the University of Maryland and
for approximately 1.5 years has provided technical assistance to the
States and industries on the management of hazardous wastes.
Jack Turer, a chemist with the Office of Toxic Substances, U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency has an M.S. in chemistry from Fairleigh
Dickinson College and is currently responsible for the PCB disposal
regulations. Mr. Turer has spent the last 32 years in private industry
dealing with environmental matters and prior to that was a research
chemist in soils.
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Mike Roulier, a soil scientist with the U.S. EPA Municipal
Environmental Research Laboratory, in Cincinnati, Ohio, has a Ph.D.
in soil physics and has served for approximately 3-1/2 years in
Cincinnati as a project officer managing extramural research projects
on the fate and transport of hazardous materials in soils from the disposal
on land of municipal and industrial wastes.
Robert Griffin, an associate geochemist with the Illinois State
Geological Survey in Urbana, Illinois has a Ph.D. in soil chemistry
and during the past several years has worked partially on grants and
contracts for the Municipal Environmental Research Laboratory, studying
the fate and transport of pollutants in soils and earth materials.
He is currently studying the absorption and degradation of PCS in soils.
David Lindorff, an assistant geologist with the Illinois State
Geological Survey at Urbana, Illinois, has an M.S. in geology and is
involved with the selection and evaluation of municipal and hazardous
waste disposal sites and the evaluation of ground water resources.
His most recent pertinent experience has been with an EPA sponsored
field study of the migration of hazardous wastes from land disposal
sites (Grant R803216) in a geologic setting quite similar to the one
in which the Wilsonville landfill is located.
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ATTACHMENT IX
EARTHLIttE CORPORATION
WtLSCNVILLE RESEARCH DIVISION
1013 West Lsure! Avenue
Springf'eid, Mine's 6?7Q4
Telephone: (217) 737-4554
February 11, 1976
For. more than twenty years the property formerly comprising the Superior
Coal Company Mine 4 near the Village of Wilsonville in Ma coup in County
has been lying unused and virtually unattended. Our company has recently
contracted for purchase of approximately one hundred.-, thirty acres of
this property described as follows:
NW 1A, SE 1A Section 10; NE 1A, SE 1/4 Section 10 •,
SW 1A, SE 1A Section 10; and a portion of SE lA,
SW 1A, NE 1/4 Section 10; T;7N, R.7VI of the 3rd P.M.,
Macoupin County ,
We solicit the cooperation and support of all the citizens of Macoupin
County in our intent to develop and operate a .unique and much-needed
industry for the recovery, treatment, storage and containment of indus-
trial residues at this location. In the interest of conserving our
precious resources and protecting our environment, it is essential that
facilities such as Earthline will scon be constructing for its Wilsonvil
Px.es earch Division be encouraged.
Within the next few months work will begin at our Wilsonville facility.
It is our hope that the people of the area will seek employment with our
company and that we will become good neighbors in the community.
We expect to utilize a substantial part of the mine spoil in our operati
and to grade and revegetate the . remaining portion.? Working together, w«
can convert a useless area of unproductive mine .?poil into a valuable
community asset and an attractive, well-groomed landscape.
When our field of fic's is opened at the Wilsonville site we hope you wil
find the time to visit us so that w'e can completely acquaint you with o
plans.
Sincerely,
David L. Beck
Wilsonville Research Division
Earthline Corporation
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8. Notice of the intent to develop and operate the subject
facility has been provided to the appropriate officials.
and to all adjacent landowners. An example of the
notification letter is attached. Notification has been
provided to the following:
Village President and
UoarU of Trur-teeo
Village of Wilsonville
VJilsonville, Illinois 62093
Macoupin County Board
of Supervisors
Macoupin County Courthouse
Carlinville, Illinois 62626
Macoupin County Regional
Planning Conmi^.ricn
c/'o Clerk of Maco:.p:.n County
l!d2ouDin County Courthouse
Carlinville, Il-linois 62626
Honorable Vince
Illinois State Senate
Four Valley Lane
Carlinville, Illinois 62626
Honorable Kenneth R. Boyle
Illinois House of representatives
Post Office Box 480
130 East First Street
Carlinville, Illinois 62626
Honorable John F. Sharp
Illinois House of Representatives
11 North Wood River Avenue
Wood River, Illinois 62095
Honorable 7'homas C. Rose
Illinois House ?f Representatives
SO? West State Street
•Jacksorv:.l?.« , Illinois 52650
j^r. Orvill-a Thode. Supervisor
Dorchester Te>.-;nchir>
Dorchester, Illinris 62020
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Ms. Dorine Hoffstetter
Rural Route One
Staunton, Illinois 62088
American Telephone and Telegraph
Five World Grain Center
New York, New York 10018
Mr. William Heyen
Rural Route Two
Box 139 B
Gille-spie, Illinois 62033
Mr. Leo Termine
Eagerville, Illinois
Mr. Kenneth Hartbarger
601 E. Chain-of-Rocks Road
Granite City, Illinois 62040
Mr. Hiram Turner
Wilsonville, Illinois 62093
Mr. Oliver White
Post Office Box 497
Bunker Hill, Illinois 62014
• % v
Mr. Morrie Giandrone
Wilsonville, Illinois 62093
Mr. Jack Mussatto
Wilsonville, Illinois 62093
Mr. James Mussato
Wilsonville, Illinois 62093
Mr.'John Nessl
409 Park Avenue
Gillespie, Illinois 62033
Treasurer of Macoupin County
Macoupin County Courthouse
Carlinville, Illinois. 62626
Draghi and Batuello
Wilsonville, Illinois
62093
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Chicago and Northwestern Transportation Co,
400 West Madison Street
Chicago, Illinois 60606
Ms. Mary Rose Vassia
51 Portland Place
St. Louis, Missouri 63108
Mr. Carline Wilson
Rural Route Fourt
Box 25
Staunton, Illinois 62088
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ATTACHMENT III
mine&s i te*nt
-S?*H
: ~ An abandoned Wil-tjr.-«,
«jSonvtUe minevsst2- has been converted-"?*--
*iinto Macoupia County's first hazardous ]£
>>aste landttlK-whJch will be used byfjn-.;
ydustries to* dump material! sue
> chemicals and pathological waste.'
Jf Earihlinr'Corporation o»'*«*••«
jpwul use the 13Vacre site
I* Industrial refuse from th, „—>-..™; Uwis ''area; following ?the- recent 1a^^^4^^^^7^
i,'-provai; by "the^sUtalEnvironroeotal^V-/^~r*Z* j.'*-^:?
»Aa»9(EPA).---' --^r-^f -£r4.v^>\••*
'and Zoning Committee.'said heTs:i'p(
soally opposed to the landfill."" ji.
' "I justi don t .like the idea of otl)
V waste being dumped kiA,<«
iswity." Hallbauer said.*01 ' *' ">'*'
' S-The landfill is expected to begin ope>-«
fatkn this week, according to Douglas /u
, j Andrews, consultng engineer for.EaruV ^ /
!»Una Corporation.-' ? ' VfiJt'V-^g.f.
»-v Andrews said some of the waste mate^-^ *f -.:.
rials generated from industries in^Alton, t^v"-'1
liWood River,'Granite City and SCrLouis.?"'
?a!so will be recyded and sold for; Indus-;'
•i-,l .™.'-"i»&i~i*->«J.V>-«i!.^>v»isJ
Ibiuer saidJ' "We don't luiow whatcou
and then again i "
-"HAZARDOUS WASTE is 'described in ^
•the Environmental Protection" Act"as-i
^"refuse with Wierent properties which i'
make such refuse dilflcult or dangerous J
.'to manage by normal means including'^.'
! chemicals/ explosives( ' pathological^.
.wastes and ••astes likely to cause fire." ^.-s
f EarJUine's operating permit, granted x-|
( by the state EPA Sept 23, prohibits the j£'
corporation from accepting radioactiv»" '
• and explosive wasti matenal. '"*•"'* "^
'•fc Under the agency's Solid Waste Rules-j|
'and Regulati&ra. Eathline Is required to^
•obtain 3 permit for each special waste ' i -
products disposed of in the landfill, ac---^ ff-
Iconang to Nlichael
HALLBAUER sAID the couii
dees not haverbrdinxnces'r«
jyjjjrt*-*^-; -"'-.-*• *»
f ar«f'mi»ed "-f ee'ingj ''oi»''t
Board concerning th« lan&filf but then
i^jxjt much •we can do'>about'll,''*said Hi
.Ijlbauer in referenct to-therEPA's a
" proval of Earthline'a operating peimil
.,^-'AU state landTills are regulated by t
^enissioa and discharge standards! a
~{£innistered by the Division, of Airftu
SWater PoUution Cootrot la addiliCArti
are subject to the -Solid Wai
Pollution Control, -.-'
p said aVecenl Supreme Court d
^^psion placed the responsibility of ian
Bing''oo!th««'EPA>;B«fpre' tl
VRilir.g^rUpps^said the' Undf
'procedures- hadj>«o; left u?.
•'Ul engineer for the EPA's Division' of- 1
.IsrA PoUution Control;^'"1 - %"7'4'
' "A landfill desiring 'to- dispose' oP10*J
• different types of waste would/need 10 .^ i1
. different permits." Rapps said. " ** **••
.* Rapps :aid examples of - hazardous vj;
• v-aste inchxie spent acids, oils, chem- ,-J
'leal process eifl'jent
i/ ' ' ' ' *" •
•." THE MCVE was abandoned in 1951 by"--,
Vthe Superior Coal Co. Andrews said the -H;^ An ominous warning backed up by barbed wire'aler ts'
MAYO
' FUippuB said the village of 7
hai not been disturbed by tl
which is enclosed by a seve
foot cyclone fence and borders the,yar>
of many residents.' sSTs^-'.'-rrt'^
'-B there are any,: they sure'havei
Results of a door-lo-door survey la
-iweek Indicated many WilsonvJIIe res
.. dens knew .'liuleaabout :the ' lanUUl
junction- '~''1''- S* 1
*'- -"' -£. .- •wi.rZr.'.V,"' :,~~-"-i.^, VV-H J'»<« escess dirt Tront.llheVlanoTillfHT-'Because Earthline plans-'to'eq
mme about five^milesT^ff^ ^f?^ P1^ f P^^Ctnncbes would be pi aced jyer Jhjstag^nat'JjrtthJ new' disposal. tectruq
he Wilsoniolle site is cur^fr*lem---?'- ^-t" •- '*? '"7 * ^-£f pja to reduce acid i Tmoffr^ggg^Bapp»Ttoeribed..tb«;iWUJopyiUl»m
-i 1, .:—i54i'»,~.«,M.i-.i..j«irmi...i.,.'M.:.r*'V^ ' --^»5i«fe.S«SuBio\je«.]ti*r4i;jfr->' *«•*•* ° •
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RADIO-TV-REPORTS, INC.
ATTACHMENT IV
4435 WISCONSIN AVENUE. N.W., WASHINGTON. D.C. 20016 244-35
FOR ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
PROGRAM CBS Safurday Eyenlng News STATION yTOp Ty
CBS Network
May 23, 1977 6:30 PM C1TY Washington, D.C,
SUBJECT Hazardous Wastes
BOB SCHIEFFER: American industry produces upwards of
24 million tons a year of dry industrial waste officially con-
sidered hazardous. The poisonous residues of an increasingly
plastic, chemicalized society.
Eventually all of it has to be dumped someplace, and
the people In those places don't like it at all, as Chris Kelly
reports from Wi Isonvi I Ie , Illinois.
CHRIS KELLY: There's not much to WiIsonviIIe. Only
about 700 people live here, the descendents of Italian and
Polish immigrants who came t'o work in the coal mine that's been
closed more than 20 years now.
To the outisder the town seems quiet, very quiet, until
you take a closer look at the flags along Wilson Avenue. They fly
upside down, a sign of distress, and simmering anger over what's
called the Earthline Corporation's Wilsonville Research Center.
Actually, it's one of the few burial grounds in the nation for
toxic wastes, a 130-acre site atop the old abandoned mine.
Since the Center opened last November, trucks have been
hauling in waste material from nearby states to be stored here
under supervision of the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency.
LOUIS PELLIGRINI: A lot of the oldtimers that's living
in this town, they don't like to live with the thought that they're
going to bring toxic materials in here. Some of them are afraid
that the place is going to blow up.
KELLY: Well, why are you so afraid of it?
OFFICES IN: NEW YORK • LOS ANGELES • CHICAGO . DETROIT • AND OTH=R PRINCIPAL CITIES
Maljnal suppi«» »i
-------
PELLIGRININ: Well, they don't know what's buried there.
\ KELLY: Before setting up it's dump, the Earthline
Corporation told Wilsonville that the facility would treat and
bury what the company called industrial residues. But the people
here say they didn't know that meant things like 240 herbicide,
solid cyanides, HPT sludge, and poIychI orinated biphenal, better
known as PCB.Tj
Five thousand barrels of PCB-contaminated soil that was
illegally dumped in Missouri is being deposited here along with
six tons of highly toxic sludge from a sewage treatment plant in
Louisville. Earthiine officials insist there is no danger, that
if the mine 300 feet below should collapse, any shift at the
surface would be minimal, that the site has a deep clay bed so
the poisons, sealed in special containers, would take 500 years
to seep out if the monitoring system failed to detect an unex-
pected I eak.
Douglas Andrews designed this site.
DOUGLAS ANDREWS: I'd describe it as being almost as com-
pletely failsafe as any facility of its type in the world.
KELLY: If you happened to reside in this community,
would you feel comfortable living here, shall we say right on the
boundary line of this depository?
ANDREWS: I know enough about the site to feel comfortable
living on the boundary of it, yes.
KELLY: But V/ilsonville is not comfortable. It's head-
ing to court to close down the dump, and when word came out re-
vcently that 1600 tons of PCB-contaminated sludge might be shipped
here from Indiana, Illinois Attorney General William Scott filed
suit to ban any further dumping of PCS. Publicizing the issue,
Scott visited tne site this week.
WILLIAM SCOTT: I don't see why Illinois has to be the
dumping ground for the nation. I think that's absolutely incred-
ible to say that in a nation that has areas that are in desert
that aren't anywhere near any population at all that we have to
pick one of the most populated states in the nation.
KELLY: But Scott's action contradicts state EPA poffcy
and underlines the dilemma posed by the Wilsonville controversy,
whether at least to control toxic waste disposal or take a chance
on losing track of what happens to it at all.
LEO EISEL: We really don't have the choice of are we
going to put PCB' s in at the V/ilsonville site or are we not Going
to put PCB's into the state at all. But the choice we have is
are we going to find safe sites to dispose of chemicals such as
-------
this down manholes during the middle of the night.
%
KELLY: It's estimated as much as 24 million tons of
toxic waste is generated in this country annually. By next year
the federal government is supposed to put into effect regulations
that cover the disposal of all solid wastes.
Americans will have to get used to a new idea in pol-
lution control. Not air or water pollution, but land pollution.
In Washington, CBS News correspondent Bill Plante spoke with
Sheldon Myers of the EPA.
SHELDON MYERS: Over time, the American public wfll
accept that it's going to mean changes in lifestyle. We've been
accustomed to using things and throwing them av/ay. Now their gar-
bage gets picked up, and nobody really cares where it gets put
down, but it's got to be put down someplace.
KELLY: Both the Earthline Corporation and Illinois en-
vironmental officials say the V/ilsonville site is ideal, the
best of what is happening in the growing new disposal industry.
But what is happening here is also about to enter the legal arena,
and soon it is likely that the questions being raised here wilt
be asked in other communities in the country.
PELLIGRINI: You wouldn't want something like this in
your backyard, would you?
KELLY: Chris Kelly, V/ilsonville, Illinois.
SCHIEFFER: And a footnote: today Illinois Governor
James Thompson announced a 45-day moratorium on the dumping of
other states' toxic wastes in Illinois.
-------
ATTACHMENT VI
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-------
«irAT^ OF ILLINOIS
' .-A'l ,-M--NT Of
.'C.' >r? M ION
STv^.if r. '-f-
"[u.t>« i.. rA
JUL 1 3137?
EPA REGION 5
OrFICe (jf R£G:ON^L
^-l^?li, IL C-I033
UrtJANA. I^!_INO>3 S13OI TELEPHONE 217 3-14-l-lSI
Jou .1 cy^y oi ynur Idctsr dacdti J'-ii.-i X, l'J?7, CD Jr-sdiJ
i3 ara >
burisU in .-uailaw ^x^ich^i nad dra sot bai
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-------
- 2
zaii ror
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cc: A & I-! M
-------
MAY 2 3 1977
™ '
UD WASTE MANAGEMENT
* '
"Vi'"*7 U? &?*''•'J^tS- i • .' *-*„*-> ,'c. i-/"; ./*•' -• - V ,' .
•" J * - ' - I
.,.«' *. « t',.^^-1 -. * » -i ,,-^
-------
!AY 2 3 1977
C. D. TROWBRIOQB, Director
CLARK AVENUE . ST. LOUIS. MO. 63103
531-8080 Code 314
Chemical. Metallurgical, Physical, Non-Oestructiva. Spectrographic,
Ayr/cultural Testing and Analyses
Investigations. Research and Development. Inspection, 'Field Services
Earthline Division
PO Box 38
Wilsonville, 111. 62093
Attention: Mr. Thomas Stanczyk
May 6, 1977
Report No. 77-02550
Lab No. 5997
REPORT OF TESTS
RESULTS:
+f& —
Nine (9) samples
T.D.S., mg/1
^gpD, mg/1
Chromium, mg/1 —
Cadmium, mg/1
Mercury , mg/1
sg*
T^D.S., mg/1
/TYD »-.-, /i ___ ___
Chromium, mg/1 —
Cadmium, mg/1
Mercury , mg/1
identified
MW1
8426
35
<.05
0.04
0.05
<.0005
MW5
3864
34
<.05/
0.02
0.04
<.0005
below f
MW2
6298
10
<.05
0.04
. 0.03
<.0005
me
1248
65
<.05
<.01
0.05
<.0005
MW3
992
40
<.05
0.05
<.0005
MP1
7106
16
MW4
2591
65
<.05
0.02
0.05
<.0005
-------
' Laboratories
•
Earthline Division
Report No. 77-02550
Page 2
314/531-8080
MW14
TDS, mg/1
COD, mg/1
Oil, mg/1
TDS,- "mg/1
COD, mg/1
Chromium, mg/1
Cadmium, mg/1 -
Zinc, mg/1
Mercury, mg/1 -
Oil, Jng/1
Calcium, mg/1 -
Copper, mg/1 —
Iron, mg/1
909
103
16
MW13
3925
131
.06
.02
.26
<.0005
34
457
.11
30
Lead, mg/1
Magnesium, mg/1
Manganese, mg/1
Nickel, mg/1
Potassium, mg/1
Sodium, mg/1
Arsenic, mg/1 —
Barium, mg/1
Phenol, mg/1
Cyanide, mg/1 —
.40
283
.88
.41
8
296
.08
.6
<.05
ully submitted.
W. Dee Trowbridge
Assistant Director
WDT/Jcv
-------
P O. BOX 38
WILSONV1LLE. ILL. 62O93
" ' *"' ' ATTACHMENT IX RSCEiV..- ->
!IJN ''•
EARTHLJNE DIVISION SCA SERVICES. INC.
.Denby. Do
**^
SCA
SERVICES
INC.
RECEIVED SUBSIDIARY
TO: Matt Straus JUN 1 8 1377
FROM: Tom Stanczyk Denby, Dobbs & Meno
RE: Chemical Breakdown of Trench Areas
Trench #1
empty, dry, has not been used.
Trench #2(filled and completed)
granular (Solo) herbicide
grit contaminated w/C-5,6
Paint sludge
paint wastes (included liquid paint wastes, latex, urethanes, resin)
oil wastes
para-nitroaniline sludge
Trench #5 (filled and completed)
oil wastes
paint sludge
paint liquid
ink residue
waste perchlor
inorganic zinc sludge
chlorinated solvent
packaged lab chemicals
phenol zinc sulfonate
Trench #4 (filled and completed
dirt contaminated w/PCB
liquid PCB and sludge
Scott fertilizer and weed killer
solid cyanide
mercury sulfide, floor sweepings'
paranitroaniline
pesticides: floor sweepings, rags, DDT, chlordane, diazinon, endrin
heptachlor, lindane malathion, methoxychlor, toxaphene,
zineb
Trench #5 (filled)
methyl mathacrylate polymer (5-10%)
paint wastes
paint sludge
paint thinner
-------
EARTHLINE DIVISION SCA SERVICES. INC.
P. O. SOX 38
WILSONVILLE. ILL. 62O93
r" SCA
SERVICES
Trench #5 (filled) - cont. INC.
SUBSIDIARY
grit w/C-5,6
C-56 bottoms (tar-like)
paranitroaniline
Trench #6 (presently working on)
grit contaminated w/C-5,6
paranitroaniline
C-56 bottoms
Trench #7 (presently working on)
dirt w/PCB
pesticides
demolition building contaminated w/Hg
-------
Attachment X
Flow Velocities and Travel Times
This describes how the Darcian and Pore Water velocities are calculated,
how they are, in turn, used to calculate travel time or containment time,
and how the amount of liquid passing through a soil in a given time is
calculated.
Assume that a column of soil is set up in the laboratory and water is be-
ing applied to the top of it just fast enough so that all the soil in this
column is always saturated but only a very thin film of water is standing
on the top surface of the column. In a period of time, a quantity of water
Q come out of the bottom of the soil column. The velocity or rate that
water is moving down through this column is calculated from:
V = Q (1)
A X t
Where V is the velocity (cm/sec, ft/hr, etc.), A is the cross sectional area
of the column (cm , in , ft% etc.) and t is the time (minutes, hrs., etc.)
that it will take for the quantity Q (quarts, liters, gallons) to flow out
'of the column.
The difference in the Darcian and Pore Water velocities is in the size of the
cross sectional area A. For the Darcian velocity, it is assumed that the
water flows through the whole cross section, A of the column as if the soil
was not there at all. For the pore water velocity, it is assumed that the
water flows only in the pore spaces between the soil particles. If E% of
the total volume of the soil column is pore space, then it is assumed that
in any cross section of the soil column, only E% of the area is open to
water flow and the A in equation (1) is replaced by E X A to calculate the
pore water velocity. If, for example, the soil had 25% pore space, the A
would be replaced by 0.25A in (1) to calculate pore water velocity.
Pore water velocity is always faster than the Darcian velocity and the pore
water velocity is likely a better estimate of how fast water is actually
moving in the spaces within the soil. The Darcian velocity, nevertheless,
is a useful parameter because it makes it easier to calculate the amount (Q)
of water that will pass through a given area of soil.
The permeability of a soil is calculated by the Darcy equation:
V = k X i (2)
Where k is the permeability of saturated soil measured in cm/sec., ft/day,
etc., i is the hydraulic gradient in ft/ft or cm/cm, and V is the Darcian
flow velocity in cm/sec., ft/day, etc. The hydraulic gradient is a measure
-------
- 2 -
of the driving force that causes water to move. For the soil column
described above, the conditions have been chosen so that i = 1.0 to sim-
plify this discussion.
To calculate the travel time or containment time for the soil column in
this example, use the distance formula:
D = R x T (3)
Where D is the distance in ft., cm., etc (in this example, the length of
the soil column), T is the travel time in hrs., days, etc., and R is the
rate of water movement (either the Darcian velocity or the pore water vel-
ocity) .
In field situation, when the permeability (k) and the hydraulic gradient (i)
have been measured at a location, the Darcian travel time is calculated by
substituting equation (2) into equation (3) and rearranging the terms.
T = D = D = D (4)
R v k x i
To calculate the pore water velocity, it is necessary to account for the
area through which water is flowing.
In equation (1) it can be seen that when pore water velocity is to be cal-
culated, A is replaced by E x A and the pore water velocity is 1/t times
greater than the Darcian velocity. (Recall that E, the soil porosity is al-
ways less than 1.0). As the V in equation (4) becomes larger, the T becomes
smaller. Therefore, the equation relating the Darcian travel time to the
pore water travel time is:
Tpw = E x Td (5)
Where Tpw is the travel time calculated on the basis of pore water velocity,
E is the fraction of the soil volume occupied by pore space, and Td is ,the
travel time calculated on the basis of the Darcian velocity.
This explanation is simplified to illustrate the basic principle. Precise
estimation of travel times must also take into account the amount of the
pore space (E) that is "dead end" so water does not flow through it and also
the time required to wet the soil when it is not completely saturated.
One way to determine what quantity of water will pass through a soil in a
given time is to go back to equation (4) and rearrange it.
V = D (5)
T
-------
- 3 -
If T is the Darcian travel time (Td) in years, and D is the depth of soil
in feet, then v will be in feet per year, the depth of water that will
pass through a given area of soil in a year. As an example, if the Darcian
travel time is 600 years and the depth of soil is 15 feet, then:
V = 15/600 = 2.5 x 10~ 2 ft/yr =0.3 inch/yr
To get the volume per year, the 0.3 in/yr would be multiplied by the area
of the soil column or, in the field, by the area of the trench or lagoon.
If this soil had a porosity of 25%, then E = 0.25 and using equation (5),
the Pore Water travel time would be:
Tpw = E x Td = 600 yrs. x 0.25 = 150 years
To determine the quantity of water using the pore water travel time, start
with equation (6):
V = 15/150 = 0.1 ft/yr = 1.2 in/yr
However, because pore water travel time is calculated assuming the water
flows only in the soil pores, the 1.2 inches/year is likewise moving down
only through part of the total area of the soil. Since the porosity, E,
was assumed to be 0.25, this 1.2 in/yr is passing through only 1/4 of the
area. If the same amount of water is spread over the whole area of soil,
the amount will be only 1/4 as much.
1.2 in/yr x 1/4 =0.3 in/yr
This is the same as was calculated with the Darcian travel time.
-------
Attachment X|
Contaminant Travel Times (years)
Rate of Contaminant Movement
Relative to Fluid Movement
3/4 1/2 1/10 1/15
Trenches full
of water 200 300 1500 2250
Trenches
empty2 400 600 3000 4500
1) Using 150 year travel time for liquids
2) Piezioraetric surface at sand layer, hydraulic
gradient 1/2 of gradient when trench is full
-------
ATTACHMENT XII
STATE OP ILLINOIS
DEPARTMENT OP
REGISTRATION AND
EDUCATION
Joan G. Anderson
RESOURCES AND
CONSEKVAT.ON Joan G. Anderson
LAORtNCC L. 5UDS5
H. S. GUTCWSKT
i veexr H. *«eftsoN
• HXOGT TW« P«K
SwSsiTTOF'lU.i»iS STAMaY *" SHAPM:O NATURAL RESOURCES BUILDING, URBANA, ILLINOIS 618O! TELEPHONE 217 344.1481
CCAN WlLLiM L. CVCRITT
sour>€r*4 ILLINOIS LnivcnsiTT
OEW jo*, c. GUYCN Jack A* Simon, Ctucr
ILLINOIS STATE GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
June 10, 1977
Mr. Matthew A. Straus
Hazardous Waste Management Division
Office of Solid Waste (AW-465)
401 M Street S.W.
U. S. Environmental Protection Agency
Washington, D. C. 20460
Dear Matt:
Please find enclosed a copy of the research report "ATTENUATION
OF PCB's BY SOIL MATERIALS AND CHAR WASTES" that you requested during our
recent inspection of the Earthline hazardous waste disposal facility in
Wilsonville, Illinois.
The results of the research report indicate that PCB's are
immobile in soil materials, including pure sand, when leached with water.
It should be noted that the Ava silty clay soil (Table 1) represents a
soil with characteristics similar to the soil materials examined at the
Wilsonville site. The results of more recent studies conducted in our
laboratory with other aqueous solutions such as landfill leachates con-
firm the results presented in the March 1977 report. However, when the
mobility of PCB's were tested using organic solvents (e.g. carbon tetra-
chloride, methylene chloride, methanol, and acetone), using the same
experimental conditions as in the aqueous solvent tests, the PCS's were
found to be highly mobile.
Therefore, based on my laboratory studies and my inspection
of the Wilsonville site, it is my best scientific judgement that the
possibility of pollution of water resources due to the migration of
PCB's in aqueous form from the site is essentially nil. I strongly
recommend that organic compounds that might solubilize PCB's not be
disposed of in the same trenches with PCB wastes since these organic
solvents greatly increase the mobility of PCS's through soil materials.
-------
Page 2
Mr. Matthew A. Straus
June 10, 1977
If I may be of further assistance in your evaluation of the
Wilsonville site, please don't hesitate to contact me.
Sincerely,. /
R. A. Griffin,
Associate Geochenist
Section of Geochemistry
cc: Jack Simon
Michael Roulier
Keros Cartwright
Howard Chinn
Enclosure
-------
ATTENUATION OF PCS'3 BY SOIL
MATERIALS ACT CHAR WASTES
by
R. A. Griffin,1 F. B. DeWalle,2 E. S. K. Chian,*
J. H. Kin,2 and A. K. Au1
'Illinois State Geological Survey and
2Civil Engineering Departiaent
University of Illinois
Urbana, Illinois 61801
A paper for publication in:
of Gas and Leachate in Landfills
Edited by S. K. Banerji
Sponsored by:
Department oc Civil Engineering
University of Missouri - Columbia
and
Environmental Protection Agency
Cincinnati, Ohio
March 1977
-------
ATTENUATION OF PCB's BY SOIL
MATERIALS AND CHAR WASTES
by
R. A. Griffin, F. B. DeUalle, E. S. K. Chiaa,
J. H. Kim, and A. K. Au
ABSTRACT
Adsorption of polychlorinated biphenyl (PCS) isomeric mixtures containing 42 and
54 percent chlorine by montaorillonite clay and soil and the relative mobility of these
compounds through soil media were determined by both gas chromatography and C labeling
techniques. Adsorption by these earth materials was found to be strong with more than 90
percent removal from solution at concentrations approaching the water solubility of the
conpounds tested.
PCB's were found to be immobile ia earth materials when measured by the soil
thin-layer chromatography technique. R- values for PCS's were found to ba zero to 0.02
for all amounts of PCB's tested (42-2C6 ng). Dicaaba, a pesticide with high nobility, was
used as an internal standard and yielded R. values of 0.80 to 1.00.
Gas chronatographic analytical procedures that allowed improved quantitative
measurement of PCB's in aqueous solutions were developed. The overall perchlorination pro-
cedure for conversion of isoaeric mixtures of PCB's to the'fully chlorinated biphenyl by
digestion with SbCls was successfully reduced fron approximately 20 steps to about 10 steps.
The speed of the analyses was improved and interference from bromine was removed. Repro-
ducibility of the overall perchlorination with 80 ng bipheayl in sealed glass tube* waa
determined to be 0.52 percent relative standard deviation.
INTKODUCTIOS
Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB's) are
used in a wide range of industrial appli-
cations such as electrical insulation, fire-
resistant end heat transfer fluids, hy-
draulic fluids, high temperature and pres-
sure lubricants, sealants, expansion media,*
adhesives, plasticized paints, lacquers,
varnishes, pigments, paper coatings, waxes,
and as constituents in elastomers. They
were largely ignored as environmental con-
taminants until Jensen (1) and Widmark (2) ,
identified thea in 1966. PCB's did not
attract auch concern as hazardous chemicals
until the incidents of contaminated cooking
oil ia Japan in 1968 and of contaminated
chicken feed in the United States in 1971
(3). Laboratory studies with animals have
shown that PCB's can cause enlargement of
the liver, induction of hepatic aicrosonal
enzymes, reproductive failures, gastric dis-
orders, skin lesions, and tumors in birds
and mammals (3). The 2000 afflicted Japanese
people in the "Yusho" incident of 1968 ex-
perienced lesions of the akin, facial
swelling, and neurological disorders that
were similar to the results reported in the
animal studies (4).
Fish and other aquatic organisms tend
to accumulate PCB's in lipid-rich tissues
and organs. Predators at the top of the
food chain may accumulate PCB's to levels of
more than 107 times that of the ambient
water (4). Man usually resides at the top
of the various food chains and, due to the
biological magnification, may ingest large -
amounts of PCB's even though only trace
amounts are present in the ambient waters.
-------
PC3's have, therefore, been considered as a
significant hazard to human health as well
as the environment.
?C3's have been manufactured in the
United States since 1929; it has been esti-
mated that oore than 400,000 tons have been
produced since that tice. The sole U.S.
manufacturer of PCB's is the Monsanto Coa-
pany located near Ease St. Louis, Illinois.
Since 1971, Xonsanto voluntarily has re-
stricted its sales of PCB's to only "closed"
systems, such as PCB-containing insulating
fluids used in electrical transformers and
capacitors. These two applications account
for essentially all the currant usa of PCB's
in the United States (5). On October 5,
1976, Monsanto announced that it would cease
to manufacture and distribute PCS's by
October 31, 1977. A timetable set by the
U.S.-EPA has called for a gradual phasing
out of PCS manufacturing by January 1, 1979,
and a ban on all PC3 processing or distri-
bution in commerce by July 1, 1979 (6).
These steps have significantly reduced the
introduction of PCB's into the environment.
Unfortunately, approximately one-half
nillion pounds of PCB's are still imported
into the U.S. each year from foreign manu-
facturers and millions of pounds of PCB's
still exist causing the environmental levels
to reaain quite high. For example, two
.tributaries of Lake Michigan have PCS levala
that consistently exceed 100 opt. This has
contributed to PC3 levels between 4 and 10
ppt in certain parts of tha lake. The pres-
ent U.S.-EPA recomaeaded water quality cri-
teria is less than 1 ppt and the high PCS
levels have caused great concern to the res-
idents of Chicago, who draw their drinking
water from tha lake (4).
Many companies discard their old elec-
trical equipment in unapproved places and
thus discharge the PCB's into the atmosphere
and waterways. One problem of disposal in-
volves the high costs and fees for trans-
porting PC3 wastes to regional incinerators'
or approved landfills vs. simply discarding
the wastes. Incineration is considered the
safest method for disposal of PCS wastes.
However, this method is extremely costly and
has some operating difficulties. PC3's dp'
not burn readily and, under improper oper-
ating conditions, can be vaporized during
incineration. Thus, incineration nay turn
out to be the major source of PCB's re-
entering the environment. In addition,
large electrical transformers and capacitors,
the major source of waste PCS's, cannot be
satisfactorily incinerated.
Thus, land disposal is the only rea-
sonable alternative for waste PC3's. Al-
though landfill disposal appears to be the
most acceptable alternativp, little infor-
mation is presently available concerning the
possibility of ground-water contamination by
leaching PCS'a from landfills. Lidgett and •
Vodden (7) analyzed waters around a sanitary
landfill for PCB's and found the contamina-
tion levels to be below their detection
limit of 4 ppb. Similarly,.Robertson and
Li (8) failed to detect. PCS's in ground
water using GC/Mass Spectro&etry techniques.
Tucker, Litschgi, and Mess (9) studied the
leaching of Aroclor 1016 fron various types
of soils and concluded that PCB's are not
readily leached fron soil by percolating
water.
The paucity of information available
shows no evidence that ground waters have
become contaminated by PCB's. However, many
surface waters do contain PCB's and the
mechanism of transport in the biosphere and .
the machanisa of attenuation in soil are
still unknown. Data on the factors affect-
ing PCS attenuation by earth materials would
provide a rational basis for future disposal
site selection and design.
BACKGROUND'
The research reported here is supported
ia part by Grant 3-804684-01, froa the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency, Municipal
Environmental Research Laboratory, Solid and
Hazardous Waste Research Division, Cincinnati,
OH 45268.
The purposes of the present project are:
a) To conduct an extensive literature review
of pertinent information on the adsorption
of hazardous organic compounds;
b) To measure the adsorption capacity of se-
lected earth materials for pure PCB's and
PCB wastes;
c) To quantitatively evaluate the effects of
pH, biological degradation, photodeccciposi-
tion, volatilization, time, and adsorbent
structure on adsorption of PCS's;
d) To use this data to develop a mathemati-
cal model that will allow prediction of PC3
adsorption and mobility; and
e) To further develop analytical procedures
that will allow improved quantitative meas-
urement of ?C3's contained in aqueous solu-
tions.
-------
PCS Materials
Adsorbents
Polychlorinated biphenyls (?CB's) is a
generic term applied to certain mixtures of
synthetic organic compounds. These com-
pounds are mixtures of very closely related
isoners and homologs that contain two phen-
yl rings with 10 possible chlorine attach-
ments. The biphenyl structure is shown in
Figure 1. PCB's are nade by substituting
chlorine atoms for one or more of the hy-
drogen atoms ac the numbered positions of
the biphenyl structure. These compounds
are chemically and themally stable, very
resistant to microbial degradation, and are
highly persistent in the environment.
2' 3'
ci £-<
6 o
1. 3IPH£.SYL STRUCTURE: Positions
2 to 6 and 2' to 6' indicate ten
possible positions for chlorine
substitution. Different aaour.ts
oc chlorine substitution fora
the various PC3'«.
The PCB materials chosen for study wera
the pure Aroclors 1242 and 1254 (42 and 542
substituted chlorine, respectively) sup-
plied by the Monsanto Company, and the 1<*C
labeled compounds were prepared by New
England Nuclear Corporation. Gas chrosa-
tographic traces of the l"*C labeled cos-
pounds were identical to those of the pura
Aroclors 1242 and 1254, respectively.
Therefore, it was assumed that thare were
no significant differences in the respec-
tive compounds and that the lc*C labeled and
pure Aroclora would behave similarly in
studies of adsorption, nobility, and micro-
bial degradation.
A used capacitor fluid was also ob-
tained for study. The fluid was drained
from a burned out 50 KVA capacitor msnufac-
tured by Westinghouse in 1966 and original-
ly contained Aroclor 1242. This capacitor
was supplied by Illinois Power Company and.
was scheduled to be landfilled. We believe
this fluid is representative of the type of
PCB wastes that are normally disposed of in
landfills.
Earth materials, representing a wide
range in characteristics, have been se-
lected as adsorbents. The materials being
studied are: Ottawa silica sand; Panther
Creek southern bentonite clay; the soils,
namely Bloorafiald Is, Ava sic, Cisne sil,
Flanagan sil, Catlin sil, Drummer sicl,
Weir sic, a calcareous loan till; and two
coal chars. The chars were selected be-
cause of their high adsorption capacity for
organic compounds. They are a waste prod-
uct of nany coal conversion processes and
thus have potential use as a liner material
for disposal sites accepting organic wastes.
Analy-ical Development
In general, PCB's are determined quan-
titatively by comparing gas chrooatographic
(GC) response patterns of a multicomponent
environmental sample with commercial PCB's
(Aroclors) or a mixture of Aroclors. This
technique is limited by the sensitivity and
reproducibility of comparisons of the large
number of peaks produced by the various PCB
isomers. The procedure is further compli-
cated because the various components of
water soluble PCB's contained in environ-
mental samples are not likely to have the
same composition as those in the original
Aroclor used as a reference compound. For
practical reasons, the quantitation is usu-
ally done by integration of the najor peaks
while ignoring the minor peaks. This can
cause some error, depending on how veil the
mixture of isomers in an unknown sample
compares to a standard.
Because of these problems, we have de-
veloped procedures that allow improved
quantitative measurement of PCB's in aque-
ous samples. The main thrust of our
studies have been to improve previous pro-
cedures whereby isomeric mixtures of PCB's
were converted to the fully chlorinated bi-
phenyl, decachlorobiphenyl (DCS), by di-
gestion with SbCli. This procedure has the
advantage of converting all the PCB's to a
single peak for improved quantitation. The
electron capture GC detector is many times
more sensitive to DCS than it is to PCB's;
thus, the conversion to DC3 improves the
sensitivity and lowers the detection limit
for PCB's.
-------
CURRENT STUDIES OF PCS ATTEMJATIOX
AKD ANALYTICAL DSVELOPMZOT
PCB Mobility
The technique of determining pesticide'
nobility ia soils by soil thin-layer chro-
eatography was introduced in 1968 by
Helling and Turner (10). Since the intro-
duction of the technique, the nobility of a
large number of pesticides in a variety of
soils has been tested (11, 12, 13). Soil
thin-layer chroaatography, or soil TLC, is
a laboratory method that uses soil as the
adsorbent phase and water as the developing
solvent in a TLC system. The systea is
relatively simple and yields quantitative
data on the mobility of organic compounds
in soils that appear to correlate well with
trends noted in the literature (10). The
results reported here are mobility data for
Aroclor 1242 and 1254 on TLC plates nade
froo sand, clay, three soils, and a coal
char. Dicaaba, a pesticide of known high
mobility, was used as an internal standard.
The soil sample was slurried with water
until aoderately fluid, and then was ap-
plied with a spreader to clean glass plates
20 ca by 20 cm square. The soil was spread
co & thickness of 0,5 ara and then air dried.
A horizontal line was scribed 12 cm abova
the base to stop water movement; vertical
lines were scribed 2 ca apart to separate
the various treatments. The compounds were
spotted 2 cm froa the base and leached 10
ca with water. The activity of the J*C la-
beled compound varied between 11,000 and
44,000 dpa. The plates ware immersed in
0.5 ca of water in a closed glass chamoer
and were removed when the wetting front
reached the horizontal line. Leaching was
thus ascending chromatography. The soil
plate was then reaoved and air dried. A
piece of 8 x 10 inch nedical X-ray fila was
placed in direct contact with the soil
plate for approximately one week. The re-
sultant autoradiograph indicated the rela-
tive movement of the compound, which was ,*
measured as the frontal R- of the spot or
streak. *
Figure 2 shows the results of PCB and
Dieaaba mobility on Catlin soil plates.
The figure is a composite of data froa two
plates illustrating the low aobility of the
two Pea's at four concentrations and the
excellent replication of the Dieaaba nobil-
ity. The amounts of PCB spotted in each
lane is labeled on the figure and ranged
froa 42 to 206 ng. It is clear that at all
four amounts PCB's remained at the origin,
were ixsobile in Catlin soil, and the Di-
. caaba had an R, of between 0.85 and 0.90.
The R, is defined as the distance the com-
pound noved relative to the distance the
wster front moved, that is, the Dicaaba
coved 85 to 50 percent of the distance the
water front moved on the plate. The two
PCB's had R, values of zero.
• Tha R, values obtained for Aroclor 1242
and 1254, and for Dieaaba on TLC plates
made with several earth materials are pre-
sented in Table 1. The results clearly in-
dicate that the two PCB's tested are highly
immobile in these test systecs. H_ values
of zero to 0.02 were obtained for all the
materials tested, even the pure silica sand.
Dieaaba was shown to be highly nobile in
'these tests with Rf values ranging froa
0.30 in the char to 1.00 in the sandy ma-
terials.
Adsorption Studies
Equilibrium adsorption studies were
carried out by shaking known volumes of PC3
solutions with varying weights of earth na-
terials at a constant temperature of 25°C.
Figure 3 shows representative results for
adsorption of Aroclor 1242 and 1254 by
montaorillonite clay. Weights of clay var-
ied fron 0.01 to 0.5 g per 10 nl of solu-
tion. Blanks containing no clay were car-
ried through the experiment. The data in
Figure 3 indicates that nore than 50 per-
cent of the PCB's were reaoved in the
blanks (no clay). The reaction was carried
out in sealed centrifuge bottles so that
volatilization and losses during separation
of the solid froa the liquid phase were
minimized. Since PCB's are highly resist-
ant to niicrobial degradation, the results
are interpreted as adsorption of the ?C3's
onto the glass walls of the centrifuge bot-
tle. This strong adsorption by the glass
container is consistent with the observa-
tion that PCB's were immobile on the silica
sand TLC plates described above. Adsorp-
tion by 0.5 g of clay is nearly complete
with less than 1 ppb remaining in solution.
It was concluded that PCB's are strongly
adsorbed by earth materials. This conclu-
sion is consistent with the high degree of
immobility observed in the soil TLC study.
Analytical Procedure Development
Little effort has been .made to derivacize
-------
O
a § s
» cy
u » •^
2 §
in O
CM O ^
-* O ^
&
•o
-------
Aroclor
1242
.02
.01
.00
.00
.00
.00
Aroclor
1254
.02
.01
.CO
.00
.00
.00
SiCicba
1.00
1.00
1.00
.68
1. 00
.30
Tabl. i: Mobility of Aroclors 1242 and [234 and
Dicazba in Earth Materials as Measured
by Soil 71iin-Uay«r Chroaacograjhy.
Coopound
Silica *and
Blooofi.ld 1*
Ava sic
Catlia sil
Monitoriilani:«
Coal Caar (1200%F)
i the PC3 residue to a single compound for
quantification. The attempted derivatives
were biphenyl and decachlorobiphenyl (DCS)._
The former derivative could be obtained by
catalytic bydrogenation of PCS's (14, 15).
The main disadvantage of this approach is
that the derivative, biphenyl, is deter-
mined with flame ionlzation detector (FID)
on CC, which decreases the sensitivity of
the detection system.
Procedures have been established to
convert PCB's to perchlorinated PCB, DCS,
by Armour (16). In brief, an extracted
PCB residue with 0.2 to 0.5 ml antimony
pentachlorida in -0.1 nl chloroform was
.subjected to heating'at 170° for 4 to 15
hours. The reaction vessel used was 10 00
oa x 150 mm (internal volume -7.5 cl) re-
sealable glass tubes; heat was applied to
one third of the tube length during tha
reaction. At the end of the heating the
excess SbCl; was decomposed with 6N HC1,
followed by hexane extraction of DCS for
CC analysis. Overall perchlorination re-
action requires approximately 20 steps.
The procedure has been subjected to
further study by Trotter (17) and the limi-
tations on the use of SbCls for perchlori-
nation of PCB's were discussed. Commer-
cially available SbCls is contaminated with
traces of Br, likely as antimonybroootetra-
chloride. The presence of the Br contami-
nants is believed to be the source of bro-
monanochlorobiphenyl (3XC3), which was a
likely competing product with DC3 during
perchlorination.
Based on the above information, our
efforts have been directed toward modifica-
. tion of the perchloriaation procedure by;
1) Increasing the amount of solvent used
during perchlorination,
2) Removing the 3r interference,
3) Reducing the overall number of reaction
steps.
The gas chroraatographic column us«d in
this study consisted of a 2 cm ID x 1.83 n
glass column packed with 4% SE 30/62 CV-210
on 80/iOO mesh chromosorb WKP. The column
temperature was held isotheraally at 260°C.
The detector used was a Hewlett Packard
linear S3Ni electron capture (ECD) with ni-
. trogea. as a carrier gas. The attenuation
of the 3as chromatograph was set at 1 x 4
with which full-scale recorder deflection
was observed with 100 ng DC3.
For the gas chromatographic quantifica-
tion, Mirex was used as an internal stan-
dard. Reproducibility of gas chromato-
.graphic quantitation of DCS with Mirex as
an internal standard will be discussed in
the later part of this section.
By increasing the anount of perchlor-
ination solvent, loss of extracted PCB's
can be avoided during concentration of the
extracts (18). Also, a larger volume of
solvent will maintain reflexing inside the
reaction vessel resulting in complete
mixing of PCB's and the perchlorioacing re-
agent, SbClj.
When 2 nl of a mixture containing equal
amounts of CHCls and SbCls was heated over-
night at a heating block temperature of
220°C, interfering gas chromatographic
peaks ware observed. The interfering GC
peaks may result from a reaction between
the SbCls and the CKClj, or between SbCls
Piy. 3. Adsorption of Aroclor 1242
and 1254 by zantaorillo.iita ag
-------
1,
A
B
CM
CO
fO
CO
CD
CO
CD
CM
CD
ro
S CM'
a.
o
i-
CO
Fig. 4. Gas chroTMtography traces for PCS analysis. A) Interference caused
by Bt and incomplete perchioci'iiacion. 3) Codpiece perchlorlnaclou shov-
ing dlaappeacanca of Br inccirfarenca. C) Analysis of actual vitar sample
usiag perchiorir.acior. procedure.
-------
and che CjHsOH chat is present in CHCla as
3 preservative. Further, the use of CKjClz
gave a similar result. However, CClj, did
not react with SbCls under the given reac-
tion conditions.
A close examination of the distribu-
tions of the reaction products DCS and 3XCB
reveals that the halogenation steps are re-
versible. When a mixture of 0.5 ml of
SbCls and 30 ng of biphenyl in 1 ml of CCii,
was reacted at 220°C for different periods
of tiae, the distribution of these products
also changes. SNCB is believed to be
forced from the reaction between biphenyl
and SbSrCli,, which is present m an iipuri-
ty in SbCls • The ratios of DCS and BKCS
vs. reaction times are given in Table 2.
Table 2: Effect of Reaction Tiaa oa Formation
of DO aad 3,'iCS.
Reaction
4 hour*
8 hourg
25 hours
I of DCS Forced
83
.93
96
of SN'C3 Forced
17
I
It is clear that a longer reaction tica
favors the formation of DC3 over BNC3, .sad '
indicates that the initial formation of
BNCB is a kinetically controlled reaction.
Further reaction tima shifts the unstable
BJJCB to the sore stable compound DC3—that
is, it is a thernodynaaically controlled
reaction. 'Figure 4A shows that when tha
reaction is incoaplete the BXC3 peak ap-
pears at 8.6 on the GC trace. When the re-
action is complete, SNCB does not appear on
the CC trace (Fig. 43). Thus interference
from Er can be eliminated by complete reac-
tion in the perchlorination step. Further-
more, the appearance of the EXC3 peak indi-
cates that complete perchlorination is not
achieved in the particular saaple.
The overall perchlorination procedure
of PCB's was successfully reduced to ap-
proximately 10 steps by modifying the usual
methods of liquid-liquid extraction and
evaporation of the solvent. This new tech-
nique now only requires 15 to 20 minutes to
prepare a. finished sample after perchlorin-
ation of PCB's. The detailed procedure is
shown in Figure 5. It was found that the
sample reaction temperature must be at
least 180°C for more than 16 hours to
achieve complete reaction and destruction
of 3NC3. In our studies, this procedure
required a heating block temperature of
240°C. Figure 4C shows a typical GC trace
for a water sample processed by the proce-
dure shown in Figure 5.
PC3 ANALYTICAL P30CSD03S
SAMPLE
200-500 Hi
Extract in CC1*
Add 0.5-0.7 ail
SbCls'
Heat sar-.ple to
180° C for 16-24 hrs
Add 1 ml CCU and
4 rol 6N KC1
Quantitatively spike with Mirex
in benzene ( ~4 ml)
Shake
Transfer organic layer
over KaSOt/NaKCOj crystal
K3 to ~ 0.8 mi
at 100* C
Adjust vol. in Kexane
to fin GC conditions
Fl£. 5. Schematic block diagran of
procedure: used in ?C3 analysis
by perchlorlaation with SbClj.
The reaction step was initially carriad
out in glass sealed tubes and excellent re-
producibility was obtained. Table 3 shows
representative results from four runs where
a. relative standard deviation of 0.52 per-
cent was obtained. • However, the glass
sealed tubes were subject to explosion and
created a safety haiard to workers in the
laboratory. Therefore, the glass tubes
were replaced with the teflon plugged reac-
tion tubas shown in Figure 6; the teflon
plugged tubes were more convenient aad
safer to usa. However, Table 3 shows that
-------
Taol« 3: Perchlorioacion at aiphnyi to DCS.
REFERENCES
Sa-tipie
1
2
3
4
Glass Sealed
58.7
53.3
59.0
59.4
RSD - 0.52*
Teflon Sealed
69.1
72.8
74.8
66.3
RSO - 5.0%
1
2
3
aucrv aore variability in the data was ob-
tained. The relative standard deviation
from replicate samples is 5 percent. This
accuracy is satisfactory for nost routine
analysis, but we are working to find ways to
improve this procedure further.
! inch
•6.
-.8.
10.
11.
12
rig. 6. Te:loa plugged reaction ves-
sel used in perchlorinacion re-
action.
Jensen, S., A Xew Cheaical Hazard: New
_Sci. 32:612. (1966).
•
Widcark, G., Possible Interference by
Chlorinated Biphenyls: .7. Assoc. Of fie.
Aura. Ch_aa. 50:1069. (1967).
Kelson, N., Panel on Hazardous Trace
Substances, Polychlorinated Biphenyls -[
Environmental lapact: Env. Kes. 5:249.
(1972).
Illinois Institute for Eavironaental
Quality, Polychlorinated Biphenyls
(?C3s): Health Effects and Recoasenda-
tions: Env. Health Resource Can tar N'eys
No. 20, May 1976.
Anaric
-------
13. Helling, C. S., Pesticide Mobility in
Soils III. Influence of Soil Proper-
ties: Soil Sci. Soc. An. Prqc. 35:743-
747. (1971).
14. Asai, R., et al., ^J. Agri. Food Chea.
19:396-393. (1971).
15. Serg, 0. W., et al., Bull. Environ.
Concam. Toxicol. 7:338-347. (1972).
16. Amour, J. A., £. AOAC 56:937-993.
(1973).
17. Trotter, W. J., J^. AOAC 53:466-463.
(1975).
IS. Webb, R. G., Isolating Organic Water
,. Pollutants: SPA Publication E?A-660/4-
I
I '
I
75-003, June 1975, ?. U-17.
10
-------
Glossary of Technical Terms and Abbreviations
CLAY - A plastic material consisting of rock or mineral fragments.
In engineering use, such material is included in the class-
ification "fines" having a diameter less than 74 microns;
In geology the term is applied to fragments having a diameter
less than 4 microns; In soil science, less than 2 microns.
COLLUVIUM - A general term applied to any loose, heterogenous, and incoherent
mass of soil material or rock fragments deposited by uncon-
centrated surface runoff or sheet erosion, usually at the base
of a slope. In this case, material on top of the glacier
that was deposited in place when the glacier melted.
DRAINAGE CHANNEL - A channel or course along which water moves in
draining an area.
FINE TEXTURED - Containing more clay and silt than sand.
GLACIAL TILL, TILL - Unsorted and unstratified drift, generally
unconsolidated deposited directly by and underneath a glacier
without subsequent reworking by water from the glacier,
and consisting of a heterogenous mixture of clay, sand, gravel,
and boulders varying widely in size and shape.
GOB PILE - A mixture of coal, shale, and earth materials remaining
from the coal cleaning process during the mining operation.
GROUNDWATER GRADIENT - The slope of the potentiometric surface.
GROUNDWATER MOUND - A rounded, mound-shaped elevation in a water table
or other potentiometric surface that builds up as a result
of the downward percolation of water through the overlying earth
materials.
HYDRAULIC GRADIENT - The rate of change of hydraulic head, per unit
distance.
HYDRAULIC HEAD - The height to which water would stand in an open pipe
when connected to a specific location in the soil.
LIQUID LIMIT - The water content at which a soil material changes from
the plastic to the semiliquid state. One of the Atterberg
Limits, measures of how soil material physical properties
are affected by changes in water content.
LOESS - A widespread, homogenous, commonly nonstratified, porous,
friable, unconsolidated but slightly coherent, usually highly
-------
calcareous, fine-grained, blanket deposit of marl or loam,
consisting predominantly of silt with subordinate grain
sizes ranging from clay to fine sand. Although source and
origin is still a controversial question, loess is now
generally believed to be windblown dust of Pleistocene age
carried from desert surfaces, alluvial valleys, and outwash
plains lying south of the limits of the ice sheets, or from
unconsolidated glacial or glaciofluvial deposits uncovered
by successive glacial recessions but prior to invasion by
a vegetation mat.
MP - Monitoring point, location where surface water is sampled,
in drainageways, streams, etc.
POLYCHLORINATED BIPHENYLS (PCB) - Mixtures of the chemical compounds
formed by the chemical bond of two benzene molecules into
a biphenyl molecule with varying numbers of chlorine atoms
attached to the biphenyl molecule. PCBs are among the most
stable organic compounds known and exhibit other properties
that render them useful as dielectric and heat transfer fluids.
Although PBCs have long been known to be toxic and bioaccumulative,
only in recent years have they been acknowledged to be a general
threat to the environment.
PED - An individual soil aggregate, an aggregation of primary soil
particles into compound particles, or clusters of primary particles
which are separated from adjoining aggregates by surfaces of
weakness. This is contrasted to a clod caused by disturbance such
as plowing, a fragment caused by the rupture of the soil
mass across natural surfaces of weakness, or a concretion
caused by local concentrations of compounds that irreversibly
cement the soil grains together.
PERMEABILITY - The property or capacity of a porous rock, sediment,
or soil for transmitting a fluid without impairment of the
structure of the medium; it is a measure of the relative
ease of fluid flow under unequal pressure.
PIEZIOMETRIC SURFACE, POTENTIOMETRIC SURFACE - An imaginary surface
representing the static head of ground water and defined
by the level to which water will rise in a well. The water
table is a particular potentiometric surface.
PLASTICITY INDEX - The water content range of a soil at which it is plastic,
defined numerically as the liquid limit minus the plastic
limit.
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HATE DUE
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POROSITY - The property of a rock, soil, or other material of containing
interstices. It is commonly expressed as a percentage of
the bulk volume of material occupied by interstices, whether
isolated or connected.
SAND - A coarse material consisting of rock or mineral fragments.
In engineering use the term is applied to fragments having
a diameter in the range 74 microns to 4,760 microns; In
geology, in the range 62 microns to 2,000 microns; In soil
science, in the range 50 microns to 2,000 microns.
SILT - A moderately coarse, floury material consisting of rock or
mineral; In engineering use, such material is included
in the classification "fines" having a diameter less than 74
microns; In geology the term is applied to fragments having
a diameter in the range 4 microns to 62 microns, In soil
science, in the range 2 microns to 50 microns.
SOLUTES - A substance dissolved in a solution.
common table salt is a solute.
When dissolved in water
STABILITY, SOIL - The quality of permanance or resistance of a structure,
slope, embankment, or other foundation to failure by sliding,
overturning, collapsing or other prevailing condition of stress,
TDS - Total Dissolved Solids. The weight of solutes in a sample
of water is determined by evaporating the water and weighing
the remaining solids.
UNSATURATED - A condition in which the interstices of a material
are not completely filled with a liquid, usually water.
The interstices not filled with liquid are filled with gases
more or less similar to those existing in the atmosphere
above the soil surface.
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US. Environmental Protection Agency
Region V, Library
230 South Dearborn Street
Chicago. Illinois 60604
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