United States
Environmental Protection
Agency.
Office of
Solid Waste and
Emergency Response
Publication 9320.7-071
February 1995
EPA, Descriptions of Nine
Sites Proposed to the National
Priorities List in February 1995
Office of Emergency and Remedial Respons
Hazardous Site Evaluation Division (5204G)
onse
Intermittent Bulletin
Volume 5, Number 1
This document consists of descriptions of the nine sites proposed to the National Priorities List (NPL) in February 1995.
The size of the site is generally indicated, based on information available at the time the site was scored using the Hazard
Ranking System. The size may change as additional information is gathered on the sources and extent of contamination.
Sites are arranged alphabetically by site name.
CLEANING UP UNDER SUPERFUND
The Superfund program is managed by the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). It is
authorized by the Comprehensive Environmental
Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA),
enacted on December 11, 1980, as amended by the
Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act
(SARA), enacted on October 17, 1986. In October
1990, SARA was extended to September 30, 1994. An
appropriation by Congress for Fiscal Year 1995
authorized Superfund to continue to operate. The
Hazardous Substance Response Trust Fund set up by
CERCLA as amended pays the costs not assumed by
responsible parties for cleaning up hazardous waste sites
or emergencies that threaten public health, welfare, or
the environment; Superfund also pays for overseeing •
responsible parties conducting cleanup.
Two types of responses may be taken when a
hazardous substance is released (or threatens to be
released) into the environment:
• • Removal actions - emergency-type responses
to imminent threats. SARA limits these actions
to 1 year and/or $2 million, with a waiver
possible if the actions are consistent with remedial
responses. Removal actions can be undertaken by
the private parties responsible for the releases or
by the Federal government using the Superfund.
• Remedial responses - actions intended to
provide permanent solutions at uncontrolled
hazardous waste sites. Remedial responses are
generally longer-term and more expensive than
removals. A Superfund-financed remedial
response can be taken only if a site is on the
NPL. EPA published the first NPL hi September
1983. The list must be updated at least annually.
EPA's goals for the Superfund program are to:
• Ensure that polluters pay to clean up the problems
they created; and
• Work first on the worst problems at the worst
sites, by making sites safe, making sites clean,
and bringing new technology to bear on the.
problem.
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REMEDIAL RESPONSES
The money for conducting a remedial response at a
hazardous waste site (and a removal action, as well) can
come from several sources:
• The individuals or companies responsible for the
problems can clean up voluntarily with EPA or
Stale supervision, or they can be forced to clean
up by Federal or State legal action.
• A State or local government can choose to
assume the responsibility to clean up without
Federal dollars.
• Superfund can pay for the' cleanup, then seek to
recover the costs from the responsible party or
parties.
A remedial response, as defined by the National Oil
and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan
(the Federal regulation by which Superfund is
implemented), is an orderly process that generally
involves the following steps:
• Take any measures needed to stabilize conditions,
which might involve, for example, fencing the
site or removing above-ground drums or bulk
tanks.
• .Undertake initial planning activities to scope out
a strategy for collecting information and analyzing
alternative cleanup approaches.
• Conduct a remedial investigation to characterize
the type and extent of contamination at the site
and to assess the risks posed by that
contamination.
• Conduct a feasibility study to analyze various
cleanup alternatives. The feasibility study is often
conducted concurrently with the remedial
investigation as one project. Typically, the two
together take from 18 to 24 months to complete
and cost approximately $1.3 million.
• Select the cleanup alternative that:
- Protects human health and the environment;
- Complies with Federal and State
requirements that are applicable or relevant
and appropriate;
-- Uses permanent solutions and alternative
treatment technologies or resource recovery
technology to the maximum extent
practicable;
- Considers views .of the State and public; and
- Is "cost effective" - that is, affords results
proportional to the costs of the remedy.
• Design the remedy. Typically, the design phase
takes 6 to 12 months to complete and costs
approximately $1.5 million.
•, Implement the remedy, which might involve, for
example, constructing facilities to treat ground
water or removing contaminants to a safe disposal
area away from the site.
EPA expects the implementation (remedial action)
phase to average out at about $25 million (plus any costs
to operate and maintain the action) per site, and some
remedial actions may take several years to complete.
, The State government can participate in a remedial
response under Superfund in one of two ways:
• The State can take the lead role under a
> cooperative agreement, which is much like a
grant in that Federal dollars are transferred to the
State. The State then develops a workplan,
schedule, and budget, contracts for any services
it needs, and is responsible for making sure that
all the conditions hi the cooperative agreement are
met. In contrast to a grant, EPA continues to be
substantially involved and monitors the State's
progress throughout the project.
• EPA can take the lead under a Superfund State
Contract, with the State's role outlined.' EPA,
generally using contractor support, manages work
early in the planning process. In the later design
and implementation phases, contractors do the
work under the supervision of the U.S. Army
Corps of Engineers. Under both arrangements,
the State must share in the cost of the
implementation phase of cleanup.
CERCLA requires that EPA select the remedy.
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National Priorities List Proposed Rule #18
Site Summaries
Table of Contents
Page Site Name and Location
4 Ace Services, Colby, Kansas
5 Bay City Middlegrounds, Bay City, Michigan
6 Gulf States Utilities-North Ryan Street, Lake Charles, Louisiana
7 Indian Head Naval Warfare Center, Indian Head, Maryland
\
8 , .Normandy Park, Apartments, Temple Terrace, Florida
9 .Old Citgo Refinery, Bossier City, Louisiana
10 Southern Shipbuilding Inc., Slidell, Louisiana
11..: Sunflower Army Ammunition Plant, DeSoto, Kansas
12 West Site/Hows Corners, Plymouth, Maine
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&EPA
UNITED STATES
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
NATIONAL PRIORITIES LIST NPL
OERR Hazardous Site Evaluation Division Washington. DC 20460 February 1995
ACE SERVICES
Colby, Kansas
The Ace Services site is a former chrome plating facility, where chrome plating was applied to farm implement
pans. The Ace Services facility operated from 1969 to 1989 and was permanently closed in March 1990. The Ace
Services site is located on approximately 2.4. acres in the eastern part of the City of Colby, a northwestern Kansas
agricultural community with a total population of 6,525 including college students and nearby rural residents.
Structural features currently at the Ace Services site include the operations buildings and a former lagoon area.
Residences and commercial property surround the site which lies approximately 200 feet west of an unnamed >
intermittent tributary to Prairie Dog Creek. Prairie Dog Creek is an intermittent stream approximately 2.5 miles
northeast of the site. .
Groundwater from the Ogallala Aquifer represents the sole source of municipal and private drinking water in and
around Colby. The Colby municipal well public water supply well no. 8, located 0.2 miles east of the Ace Services
site, was closed in 1980 on orders from Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) due to chromium
in the ground water at concentrations above the Federal maximum contaminant level drinking water standard for
chromium. An estimated 6,180 people are currently served by seven Colby municipal system supply wells. All
of the wells are located within a 4-mile radius of the site, and each well draws from the Ogallala Aquifer. The
depths of the municipal wells range from 202 to 281 feet below ground surface.
From 1969 to 1975, chrome plating wastewater generated during operations at the Ace Services facility was
discharged directly to the ground surface immediately west of the unnamed tributary to Prairie Dog Creek. A
citizen's complaint regarding the Ace Services facility was filed with KDHE in March 1971. Analytical data from
samples of the discharged wastewater collected by KDHE and EPA in 1971 and 1972 indicated the presence of
, chromium. In 1974 and 1975, concrete retention vats were installed at the Ace Services facility, and an evaporation
lagoon was constructed immediately adjacent to the facility to receive discharged wastewater. However, the
evaporation lagoon was not lined, and chromium-contaminated wastewater was allowed to contaminate the soil and
infiltrate into the ground. Also on site are chrome plating solutions, bulk hazardous wastes, and caustic acidic
processing materials contained in vats and drums that were previously stored inside the Ace Services facility.
KDHE has recommended that a remedial investigation and feasibility study be undertaken to determine what action
should be taken to remediate the contaminated groundwater in the vicinity of the site. KDHE has also recommended
that contaminated soils in the lagoon area should be properly remediated to remove a continuing source of
contamination.
In 1981, Ace Services excavated approximately 2,200 cubic yards of chromium contaminated soil and sludge from
the Ace Services lagoon area and disposed of it at the Thomas County landfill, a municipal solid waste sanitary
landfill. In March 1992, KDHE removed the bulk hazardous liquid and solid wastes stored iriside the Ace Services
facility. Ace Services installed a recovery well at the site in 1980, to be used to extract contaminated groundwater
from the Ogallala Aquifer. This recovery system never became fully operational. KDHE installed three monitoring
wells at the site in 1990. '
EPA completed a removal action in July 1994, which consisted of removing residual contamination (mainly dusts) -
from the building interior, excavation of a concrete trough and the underlying soil, installation of additional building
support columns near the trough, demolition of the wastewater treatment building, excavation of underlying soil,
and excavation and stabilization/treatment of lagoon soil. All waste was shipped off site for disposal, except for
approximately 3,000 gallons of wastewater, which was treated on site and discharged to a publicly-owned treatment
works.
[The description of the site (release) is based on information available at the time the site was scored. The
description may change as additional information is gathered, on the sources and extent of contamination. See 56
FR 5600, February 11, 1991, or subsequent FR notices.]
Superfund hazardous waste site listed under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) as amended
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vvEPA
UNITED STATES
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
NATIONAL PRIORITIES LIST NPL
OERR Hazardous Site Evaluation Division Washington. DC 20460 February 1995
BAY CITY MIDDLEGROUNDS
Bay City, Michigan
The Bay City Middlegrounds site occupies approximately 40 acres of land on Middlegrounds Island in the Saginaw
River in Bay City, Michigan. The Bay City Middlegrounds site is located at 800 Evergreen Dr. just north of Cass
Ave. Approximately 58,900 people live within a 4-mile radius of the site. '
The Bay City Middlegrounds site is an inactive landfill and dredged sediment disposal area owned and previously
operated by Bay City. The landfill accepted wood, concrete and other construction and demolition debris, municipal
and household wastes, and industrial wastes, both liquids and solids. The sediment disposal area consists of piles
of sediments dredged from the Saginaw River and Saginaw Bay by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The
sediments in some areas of the river and bay have been found to be contaminated with a variety of hazardous
substances, including pesticides and PCBs.
i
The landfill contains a mixture of wastes, including construction and demolition debris, household and municipal.
wastes, and solid and liquid industrial wastes. There has been extensive sampling of the soils and groundwater
associated with the landfill and analytical results have revealed high concentrations of PCBs in certain areas of the
landfill. Other contaminants found at elevated concentrations include solvents, benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene,
xylenes, polynucleic aromatics, phthalates, pesticides, and a variety of other contaminants.
The dredged sediment piles on the north end of the site were placed on the site, dewatered, and used for other
purposes including daily cover for the landfill. Analytical results from the samples collected from this source have
revealed the presence of polynucleic aromatics, phthalates, PCBs, pesticides, and heavy metals.
Hazardous substances from the site have contaminated the groundwater and surface water. The major threat that
the site poses is to surface water. Contaminated groundwater and surface runoff discharge to the Saginaw River
and have contaminated areas which are fished as well as a small river wetland. A drinking water intake for the Bay
municipal system, which serves approximately 94,426 hi Bay City and the surrounding area, could potentially be
affected by site contamination; also potentially affected are more fisheries in the river as well as in the bay,y
wetlands, Federal- and State-designated threatened and endangered species, and a State-designated wildlife area.
[The description of the site (release) is based on information available at the time the site was scored. The
description may change as additional information is gathered on the sources and extent of contamination. See 56
FR 5600, February 11, 1991, or subsequent FR notices.]
Supsrfund hazardous waste site listed under the Comprehensive Environmental Response. Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) as amended
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x>EPA
UNITED STATES
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
NATIONAL PRIORITIES LIST NPL
OERR Hazardous Site Evaluation Division Washington. DC 20460 February 1995
GULF STATES UTILITIES-NORTH RYAN STREET
Lake Charles, Louisiana
The Gulf States Utilities (GSU)-North Ryan Street site service yard is located at 303 North Ryan Street, Lake
Charles, Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana. The facility is situated on the east and west sides of North Ryan Street near
the intersection of North Ryan Street and River Road. GSU-North Ryan Street consists of the west service yard
(west of N. Ryan St.) and the east yard (east of N. Ryan St.) which total approximately 19 acres.
The GSU-North Ryan Street facility has been in operation since 1926. Prior to 1926, the property was occupied
by the Lake Charles Gas Company. Coal gasification operations by the gas company resulted in an unknown
quantity of coal tar which was deposited in the adjacent wetland area. After the property was purchased in 1926,
GSU-North Ryan Street began to utilize the wetland area, then encompassing 6 acres, as a landfill for waste
materials associated with the North Ryan Street facility's operation, such.as for the disposal of electrical poles and
equipment, debris, appliance carcasses and miscellaneous items. According to a former employee, used transformer
oils and transformers were routinely dumped into the landfill area. By 1980, the landfill was filled to capacity and
covered with shells and soil. In at least one area, the covering has subsided or been breached, and a tar seep
covering approximately 64 square feet is present. This area was identified in 1988 during an inspection conducted
by the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (LDEQ).
In September 1988, LDEQ issued a compliance order to GSU to conduct remedial activities at the GSU-North Ryan
Street site. Studies were conducted by GSU beginning in December 1988 and continuing through October 1990.
EPA conducted a site inspection (SI) at the site which included sampling activities during the week of October 1,
1990 and the completion of an SI report in September of 1992. Samples collected during SI field activities from
Calcasieu River sediments revealed that contaminants attributable to the GSU-North Ryan Street facility were being
released to the Calcasieu River. Specifically, the contaminants of concern to the surface water are polyaromatic
hydrocarbons, copper, and lead.
The Calcasieu River, a recreational fishery, is within 60 feet directly north of the GSU-North Ryan Street facility.
Lake Charles and Prien Lake are within 15 miles of the site in the Calcasieu surface water system and are also
recreational fisheries. Wetland areas contiguous to surface water downstream of the site are abundant.
The City of Lake Charles and the City of Westlake operate public ground water drinking water supply wells located
within 4 miles of the GSU-North Ryan Street facility. According to EPA's SI sampling conducted in October 1990,
public drinking water supply wells located on the GSU-North Ryan Street property and several located on adjacent
property are not contaminated. The public drinking water supply wells, both on site and the remainder that are
within 4 miles of the site, draw water from the Chicot Aquifer and are screened at depths of 500 feet below land
surface and greater. The total estimated user population for the portion of the City of Lake Charles drinking water
supply system potentially affected by the site is 56,120 and for the Westlake system is 4,988.
[The description of the site (release) is based on information available at the time the site was scored. The
description may change as additional information is gathered on the sources and extent of contamination. See 56
FR 5600, February 11, 1991, or subsequent FR notices.]
Superfund hazardous waste site listed under the Comprehensive Environmental Response. Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) as amended p A
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s>EPA
UNITED STATES
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
NATIONAL PRIORITIES LIST NPL
OERR Hazardous Site Evaluation Division Washington. DC 20460 . ; February 1995
INDIAN HEAD NAVAL SURFACE WARFARE CENTER
Indian Head, Maryland
The Naval Surface Warfare Center, Indian Head Division (NSWC), formerly known-as the Naval Ordnance Station,
Indian Head, is located in southern Maryland on the Indian Head Peninsula. It is bounded on the south by
Mattawoman Creek, on the west and north by the Potomac River, and on the east by the town of Indian Head.
NSWC, which occupies approximately 3,400 acres, was established in 1890 as the Naval Proving Ground, with the
mission of conducting proof and acceptance testing of munitions. The facility's mission was expanded to include
the manufacture and testing of explosives and propellants; it later was known as the Naval Powder Factory (1932
to 1949) and the Naval Propellent Plant (1958 to 1965). In 1966, the facility was designated as the Naval Ordnance
Station. Over its 100-year history of operations, the facility has manufactured a variety of munitions chemicals.
The chemicals include smokeless powder, ammonium picrate, nitroglycerine, nitrocellulose, and nitroguanidine, as
well as sulfuric and nitric acids used in the manufacture of chemicals.
Manufacturing, testing, loading, and assembly operations at the site have generated a variety of explosive, reactive, .
and hazardous wastes. Hazardous wastes generated from facility operations were routinely dumped into pits and
landfills on the facility or burned in open burning grounds. Industrial wastewaters were routinely discharged to
septic systems and to open ditches and storm sewers that empty directly into surrounding bodies of water.
Over a period of 11 years, in six separate investigations, more than 100 contaminated source areas have been
identified at the NSWC." Only 30 of those areas have been investigated in sufficient detail to be evaluated for
CERCLA eligibility. The 30 sources generally fall into six categories: (1) releases of mercury from the testing of
nitroglycerine and the production of oxidizers; (2) releases of silver from x-ray processes and from the production
of acetal formal (a component of propellants); (3) solvent spill and disposal areas; (4) open burning grounds used
for the disposal of explosives and solvents; (5) land disposal units and storage units that received hazardous wastes;
and (6) discharges of industrial process wastewaters containing hazardous constituents. Only eight sources, those
associated with the release of mercury, have been evaluated under the HRS.
The eight sources are located in two clusters, approximately 5,700 feet apart, in the Explosive Process building,
the Biazzi Plant, and six laboratory buildings. One of the sources involved the production of hydrazide nitroformate
(an oxidizer used in propellants). Over a period of 8 years, waste mercuric nitrate, dissolved in nitric acid, was
poured from 55-gallon drums into an unlined 6-by-4-foot bed of limestone chips located along the west bank of a
drainage ditch behind the laboratory. The other seven sources consist of mercury releases attributed to procedures
used in purity analysis of nitroglycerine. The releases were the result of more than 80 years of routine spilling of
liquid mercury during nitrate-ester analysis of explosives manufactured at the facility. During the analyses, mercury
commonly was spilled on the floor and into floor drams; nitrometer bulbs occasionally exploded; mercury vessels
often were broken; during the rinsing step, mercury was washed out of the vessels and into sink drams.
Releases to surface water have been documented at all seven of the laboratories that conducted nitrate-ester analysis.
Sink and floor drains that routinely received spills elemental mercury, are connected to septic systems, sanitary
sewers, and storm sewers that discharge to open ditches leading to nearby Mattawoman Creek. Mattawoman Creek
converges with the Potomac River. Mattawoman Creek and the Potomac" River both provide habitats for several
endangered marine and wetland species, including the bald eagle. Both Mattawoman and the Potomac are used for
commercial fishing, harvesting of shellfish, and recreation.
Numerous private wells in the area draw from shallow groundwater, which may be contaminated from site activities.
[The description of the site (release) is based on information available at the time the site was scored. The
description may change as additional information is gathered on the sources and extent of contamination. See 56
FR 5600, February 11, 1991, or subsequent FR notices.]
Superfund hazardous waste site listed under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) as amended Revised
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&EPA
UNITED STATES
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY •
NATIONAL PRIORITIES LIST NPL
. OERR Hazardous Site Evaluation Division Washington, DC 20460 February 1995
NORMANDY PARK APARTMENTS
Temple Terrace, Florida
The Normandy Park Apartments site is located at 11110 North 56th Street. From the early 1950s until 1963, Gulf
Coast Recycling. Inc. (Gulf Coast) operated a battery breaking and lead smelting facility at the site location. Gulf
Coast ceased operations in 1963 and demolished onsite buildings that same year. This property was then used as
an open dump until approximately 1968 when Gulf Coast built the Normandy Park Apartments. The site has no
RCRA status.
The apartments occupy approximately 8.25 acres consisting of a northern adult section and a larger southern family
section. On site there are ,12 residential buildings, tennis courts, a playground, two swimming pools, and an office
building. Approximately 283 residents live in the apartment complex.
In January to February 1992, Gulf Coast collected soil samples and groundwater samples from both onsite
temporary wells and permanent monitoring wells completed in the surficial aquifer. Analyses revealed high
concentrations of lead both at and below the soil surface and elevated concentrations of lead in groundwater.
- . • /
In February 1992, EPA conducted a sampling investigation and found lead in the soil. Further EPA sampling in
March to April 1992 also found elevated lead concentrations in 12 of the 15 soil samples collected and in the
groundwater.
In March 1992, Gulf Coast conducted a second sampling investigation which included the collection of 110 onsite
surface soil samples. Analyses of these soil samples revealed that contaminated soil exists within 200 feet of all
onsite apartment buildings and recreational areas.
In June 1992, EPA and Gulf Coast entered into an Administrative Order on Consent. EPA required Gulf Coast
to isolate areas where total lead concentrations exceeded 500 to 1000 ppm. Two portions of the northern section
of the site have been capped with a liner and 4 inches of concrete: Gulf Coast plans to cap the entire southern
section of the site with a liner and 4 inches of concrete.
In the Temple Terrace area, the two major sources of groundwater are the surficial aquifer and the underlying karst
Floridian Aquifer system. Approximately 59,050 persons obtain drinking water from wells completed in the Upper
Floridan Aquifer within 4 miles of the site. The nearest municipal well used for obtaining drinking water is located
0.14 mile east of the site.
[The description of the site (release) is based on information available at the time the site was scored. The
description may change as additional information is gathered on the sources and extent of contamination. See 56
FR 5600, February 11, 1991, or subsequent FR notices.]
Superfund hazardous waste site listed under the Comprehensive Environmental Response. Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) as amended
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&EPA
UNITED STATES
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
NATIONAL PRIORITIES LIST NPL
OERR Hazardous Site Evaluation Division Washington. DC 20460 ; February 1995
OLD CITGO REFINERY (BOSSIER CITY)
Bossier City, Louisiana
The Old CITGO Refinery (Bossier City) site is located in downtown Bossier City, Louisiana, about 2 miles east
of downtown Shreveport and 1,800 feet north of the Red River. The former refinery site consisted of about 215
acres in Bossier City, Bossier Parish, Louisiana. Historically, the site has been divided between north and south
by present-day Old Minden Road. U.S. Highway 71 (Barksdale Boulevard) and Louisiana State Highway 72 (Old
Minden Road) intersect in the middle of the refinery.. The site is bordered on the north by the Illinois Central Gulf
Rail Lines railroad and on the south by Kansas City Southern railroad.
In 1923, Louisiana Oil Refining Corporation built the refinery for the production of home heating and fuel oils.
The 215-acre site consisted of a 120-acre bulk storage area located north of Old Minden Road and a 95-acre refinery
process area located to the south. Arkansas Fuel Oil Corporation acquired the refinery in 1936 and operated it until
1948 when the refinery operations were shut down and process equipment was dismantled. Between 1948 and the
early 1960s, petroleum storage tanks were still in use. In 1957, Cities Services Companies (CSC) merged with
Arkansas Fuel Oil Corporation and assumed responsibility ^or the site. In 1966 and 1967, the site was cleared for
development. From 1968 to the present, the site has been fully developed.
Private residences and commercial and light industrial establishments now cover a large portion of the former
refinery site. The northwest corner of the site contains a single-family residential development, several apartment
complexes, and commercial establishments. The northeastern portion of the site contains the largest plot of
undeveloped land within the Old CITGO Refinery site boundaries and several commercial establishments. The
southern portion of the site is covered by several large apartment complexes, other residential areas (mainly
townhouses and single-family homes), and several commercial establishments, including two hotels.
Area residents have complained about strong odors associated with the site. In 1990, 47 families were evacuated
from the Alexis Park Apartments because high concentrations of methane and other organic compounds were
detected in indoor air samples. Some Bossier City residents claimed to have encountered evidence of the refinery,
including black-stained soil and black, viscous sludges, in their yards and driveways.
Extensive research on the Old CITGO Refinery site has been completed to document site history and operations and
to determine the presence of hazardous substances in the subsurface soil. The site has been inspected by the EPA
Emergency Response Branch, the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (LDEQ), and CSC. Analyses
of subsurface soil samples collected on site revealed elevated levels of heavy metals and organic contaminants. In
February 1988, EPA referred the site to LDEQ for any action under State authority. The site has been under
investigation by OXY-U.S.A., Inc. who acquired CSC. The investigation includes collecting soil, surface water,
and groundwater samples and analyzing them for hazardous substances associated with the former refinery facility.
In September 1992,>EPA conducted an expanded site inspection. High levels of lead and mercury were detected
in surface soil samples collected throughout the site. Contamination was consistently detected along the bayou
impoundments located north of Old Minden Road (North Impoundments) and throughout the refinery process area
south of Old Minden Road. The North Impoundments were used to treat oil-contaminated wastewater generated
during crude oil drilling and storage activities. Other wastewater treatment units, such as hot ponds, spray ponds,
and impoundments, were located in the refinery process area. The area is densely populated, and people could be
exposed to soils contaminated with lead and mercury.
/
[The description of the site (release) is based on information available at the time the site was scored. The
description may change as additional information is gathered on the sources and extent of contamination. See 56
FR 5600, February 11, 1991, or subsequent FR notices.]
Superfund hazardous waste site listed under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) as amended ^—.,
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vvEPA
UNITED STATES
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
NATIONAL PRIORITIES LIST NPL
OERR Hazardous Site Evaluation Division Washington. DC 20460 February 1995
SOUTHERN SHIPBUILDING INC.
/
Slidell, Louisiana
The Southern Shipbuilding Inc. site is located in Slidell, St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana, on approximately 54
acres of wooded land at 999 Canulette Road. The site is adjacent to Bayou Bonfouca, approximately one-half
mile downstream of U.S. Highway 433 bridge and approximately 1.8 miles downstream of the Bayou Bonfouca
NPL site. The site is bordered to the north and west by Bayou Bonfouca, .to the east by wooded acreage, and to
the south by a residential community of Slidell. The City of Slidell has a population of approximately 27,000.
Barge/ship manufacturing and repair activities were conducted at the site from 1919 to August 1993. Canulette
Shipbuilding owned the site from 1919 until 1954, when it was sold to J&S Shipbuilding. The site was then
sold to the current owner, Southern Shipbuilding Corporation, in 1957. Gas-freeing and barge cleaning
operations were conducted at the site from approximately 1919 to 1971 and the wastes were disposed of in two
surface impoundments (designated as the North and South Impoundments). A smaller overflow impoundment is
located between the North and South Impoundments and was created from a topographic low spot that
continually received oily waste from a leaking pipe connecting the North and South Impoundments. Water from
the North Impoundment was piped to the South Impoundment. As effluent rose in the South Impoundment, it
was channeled through an overflow pipe into the first of seven baffle ponds that allowed for gravity filtration of
wastes until effluent from the seventh baffle pond discharged to Bayou Bonfouca.
' ;
Discharge of pond effluent and sanitary wastewater into Bayou Bonfouca was initially regulated under a
National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit starting in March 1978. This permit was
terminated in September 1984, when the company reported that it no longer discharged into Bayou Bonfouca.
EPA reissued the NPDES permit in October 1987; it expired in October 1992.
The Southern Shipbuilding site was brought to the attention of EPA by Louisiana Department of Environmental
Quality (LDEQ) in July 1985. EPA completed a preliminary assessment in November 1987. EPA developed a
sampling plan and referred the site to LDEQ. LDEQ sampled the surface impoundments and the sediments of
Bayou Bonfouca in November and December 1992. Results indicated the presence of polynuclear aromatic
hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the impoundments and in bayou sediments. EPA performed additional sampling as part
of a site inspection in August 1993. The analytical results from the SI confirmed the presence of PAHs in the .
impoundments and in sediments from Bayou Bonfouca.
Known sources of contamination are the North and South Impoundments and the overflow pond. The baffle
system ponds may also be sources.
Surface water is the major pathway of concern. Chemical analyses of a sediment sample in the bayou indicated
the presence of numerous PAHs. Bayou Bonfouca is a fishery and is used for recreation. Additionally, an
abundance of contiguous wetland areas and numerous sensitive environments lie along the banks of Bayou
Bonfouca and downstream waterways. These sensitive environments are habitats for several endangered
species—the bald eagle, the peregrine falcon, the.brown pelican—and a threatened species, the Gulf of Mexico
sturgeon..
[The description of the site (release) is based on information available at the time the site was scored. The
description may change as additional information is gathered on the sources and extent of contamination. See
56 FR 5600, February M, 1991, ,or subsequent FR notices.]
Superfund hazardous waste site listed under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) as amended
-------
&EPA
UNITED STATES
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
NATIONAL PRIORITIES LIST NPL
OERR Hazardous Site Evaluation Division Washington. DC 20460 February 1995
SUNFLOWER ARMY AMMUNITION PLANT
DeSoto, Kansas
The Sunflower Army Ammunition Plant is a Government-owned, contractor-operated military installation, currently
operated by Hercules, Inc. The installation began operations in 1942. The primary operational mission of the
installation was to manufacture smokeless powder and single-, double-, and triple-base propellants. Additional
facility operations included manufacture/regeneration of nitric and sulfuric acids and munitions proving. Since 1971,
the majority of the installation has been in a standby, inactive status. As of 1989, the nitroguanidine production
area was in operation. The majority .of the industrial infrastructure remains at the site. The 9,065-acre site is
located in a sparsely populated rural area. Land use in the vicinity is primarily agricultural. The site is situated
on a broad ridge, with most of the installation lying between two perennial streams—Captain Creek on the west and
Kill Creek on the east.
Potential sources of contamination at the site include production line areas, magazine storage areas, and
approximately 70 solid waste management units (SWMUs). The SWMUs are comprised of a diverse group of
sources, including surface impoundments, ditches, sumps, projectile ranges, burning grounds, and landfills. Based
on availability of analytical data, a total of five surface impoundment SWMUs were selected as hazardous substance
sources for the HRS evaluation: Pond A, Pond B, Ponds 3A/3B, Ponds 4A/4B, and Ponds 5A/5B. Each of these
five surface impoundments (also known as settling/blender ponds) was designed to receive waste material generated
during munitions manufacturing processes at the site. Therefore, all five of the sources are associated with the same
operational mission.
Analytical data associated with numerous past sampling events, particularly the 1988 remedial investigation (RI),
have indicated the presence of a wide range of hazardous substances at the site. The primary types of hazardous
substances detected at the site are inorganic compounds and explosives/nitrated compounds. Samples of surface
water and sediment collected during the RI from Kill Creek downstream of the site revealed elevated levels of
mercury and arsenic. People fish in Kill Creek downstream of the site. Kill Creek is also a habitat used by an
endangered fish species, the pallid sturgeon, and a State-designated threatened species, the flathead chub.
The 1988 SI and a 1987 groundwater contamination survey conducted by the U.S. Army Environmental Hygiene
Agency (AEHA) indicate that sources at the Sunflower Army Ammunition Plant facility have released hazardous
substances to the groundwater.
In addition to periodic investigations initiated by AEHA and the U.S. Army Toxic and Hazardous Materials Agency,
the Sunflower Army Ammunition Plant facility has been subject to periodic RCRA activities, including groundwater
monitoring assessments, an operation and maintenance inspection, a comprehensive monitoring evaluation, and a
RCRA facility assessment. Throughout the operational history of the facility, various liquid discharges have been
permitted under the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System.
In 1971, an accidental release of ammonia to Kill Creek resulted in a fish kill, and EPA levied a fine against the
facility. .
[The description of the site (release) is based on information available at the time the site was scored. The
description may change as additional information is gathered on the sources and extent of contamination. See 56
FR 5600, February 11, 1991, or subsequent FR notices.]
Superfund hazardous waste site listed under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) as amended
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&EPA
UNITED STATES
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
NATIONAL PRIORITIES LIST NPL
OERR Hazardous Site Evaluation Division Washington. DC 20460 February 1995
WEST SITE/HOWS CORNERS
Plymouth, Maine
The West Site/Hows Comers site encompasses 2 acres of a 17-acre wooded lot on Campbell Road in Plymouth,
Penobscot County, Maine (near Hows Corners). The site consists of a partially grassy clearing, approximately 150
by 200 feet, with occasional bedrock outcroppings that trend north-south. The site is situated on a moderate
geographic high in an area that is otherwise of low relief. The site is currently inactive and there are no buildings
or other structures.
The Town of Plymouth assumed title to the West Site/Hows Comers property hi 1992 as a result of delinquent
taxes. The former owner-operator, George R. West, Jr., operated the site as a waste oil storage and transfer facility
from 1965 to 1980 in affiliation with the Portland/Bangor Waste Oil Company (PBWO). Waste oil, delivered by
PBWO tank trucks, was stored on site in approximately eight 1,000-20,000 gallon storage tanks.
PBWO 'collected, transported, and deposited on the West Site/Hows Corners site unknown quantities of waste oil
from military bases, auto dealerships, municipalities, local garages, bulk transportation companies, industries, and
utility companies. Oil was stored in tanks and separated by density, the light oils rising to the top and the heavier
oils and,sludges settling to the bottom. The company then decanted the lighter oil which was sold for fuel; the
heavier oils were sold for dust control on dirt roads. . • '
PBWO company records indicate that the waste stored on the site was predominantly composed of used motor oils
and industrial lubricating oil; however, because of the varied types of facilities contributing waste, the exact
constituents of the oils are unknown. In 1980, PBWO ceased operations at the site. Subsequently PBWO cut up
the tanks on site and sold them to a scrap metal dealer. No waste oil activities are known to have taken place after
the tanks were removed.
The only waste source on the site in 1988, when EPA performed a site inspection, was contaminated soil because
the aboveground storage tanks were removed in 1980. In 1990-1991, EPA removed 847.37 tons of contaminated
soil from the center of the site, approximately 100 feet by 50 feet, and disposed of it at a licensed TSCA facility.
The soil was primarily contaminated with PCBs and chlorinated organic compounds.
The source of the PCBs on the site is unknown; however, it is assumed that they were deposited on the site as a
constituent of the waste oil. PBWO clients included electric utilities and Department of Defense installations that
used transformers containing dielectric oils, which are possible sources of PCBs.
Thirteen residential well water supplies serving 43 people have been contaminated with chlorinated compounds
above a health-based benchmark. Contaminants attributable to releases from the West Site/Hows Corners site
include tetrachloroethene, 1,1,1-trichloroethane, trichloroethene, 1,1,2-trichloroethane, 1,1-dichloroethene, and
1,2-dichloroethene. These contaminants have been detected hi private supply wells near the site and in monitoring
wells on the site. In addition groundwater samples collected from onsite monitoring wells contain elevated
concentrations of other volatile compounds and PCBs.
The site is surrounded by a chain link fence which was partially installed by the Maine Department of
Environmental Protection hi 1988 and completed by EPA hi 1990.
{The description of the site (release) is based on information available at the time the site was scored. The
description may change as additional information is gathered on the sources and extent of contamination. See 56
FR 5600, February 11, 1991, or subsequent FR notices.] i
Superfund hazardous waste site listed under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) as amended
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