EPA Region 8 Brownfields Program
EPA Brownfields Program and  Triad
Approach  Lead  to Poudre River Cleanup
and  Development  of a LEED Gold Certified
Community Center in Fort Collins,  Colorado
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Through use of its EPA Brownfields Assessment grant, the City of Fort Collins, Colorado found
unexpectedly high contamination levels on properties that were key to the city's downtown river corridor
redevelopment strategy. Further environmental investigations enabled through EPA's Targeted Brownfields Assessment
Program, utilizing the Agency's Triad approach, revealed that contamination was migrating into the adjacent Cache La
Poudre River. With assistance from these and other resources, including EPA's Emergency Response Program, the area was
efficiently characterized and cleaned up and is now home to a LEED Gold certified community center.
                                                    KEY ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Brownfields Assessment Reveals Unexpected
Contamination
As part of its Downtown River Corridor Implementation
Program, which focuses on environmental restoration
and economic revitalization of a 352-acre area along
the Cache La Poudre River, the City of Fort Collins,
Colorado used a $250,000 EPA Brownfields Assessment
Pilot Grant awarded in 2000 to identify properties with
significant environmental concerns. Of the approximately
120 separate parcels and 65 landowners within the study
site, the city owns nearly a third of the land area (107
acres). One of the city's key goals as part of the Corridor
Program was to relocate and expand the Northside Aztlan
Community Center, which had been sited on a portion of
a former municipal landfill and was continuing to settle,
damaging the structure's foundation and rendering the
center unusable.
In 2001, an environmental site assessment funded
through the EPA grant indicated that environmental
conditions at the  12-acre former landfill and an adjacent
site once home to a gas plant and a gasoline supply
station would need to be addressed due to fuel-related
groundwater contamination and the presence of coal tar. Coal tar is a viscous, oily, odorous liquid that is a by-
product from the former gas plant's conversion of coal into fuel for home heating and city lights. The gas plant
operated from 1904 to 1927, and a gasoline distribution company used a portion of the property in later years.
Triad Approach Leads to Efficient Characterization and Planning

EPA Region 8's Brownfields Program provided contractual support through a Targeted Brownfields Assessment
(TEA) to conduct further environmental characterizations of the site. It also engaged EPA's Brownfields
and Land Revitalization Technology Support Center (BTSC) to help develop field work plans using the
Agency's Triad approach. Designed to produce decision quality data as efficiently and cost-effectively
as possible, the Triad approach augments traditional methods of site characterization by using real time
measurement technologies and dynamic,  strategies that can be quickly modified based on site conditions.
                                                       Decreased characterization costs and time by
                                                       using the Triad approach
                                                       Coordinated with the PRP and completed an $8.8
                                                       million Removal Action
                                                       Enabled expansion of the Northside Aztlan
                                                       Community Center, to LEED Gold certification
                                                       standards
                                                       Improved water quality and habitat within and
                                                       adjacent to the Poudre River

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LEVERAGED RESOURCES
   $250,000 from an EPA Brownfields Assessment
   Demonstration Pilot
TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE
BTSC coordinated with stakeholders to continually
refine a conceptual site model (CSM), select appropriate
investigative technologies, and sequence data collection
efforts to improve project efficiency. The entire site
characterization took approximately one-year to
complete. It is estimated that use of the Triad approach
resulted in 30 percent cost savings when compared with
traditional characterization methods, while increasing the
amount and quality of the resulting data.

Environmental characterizations indicated that an
approximately 700-foot stretch along the southwest bank
of the river was being adversely impacted by coal tar.
Chemicals from other sources, such as gasoline and other
petroleum-related by-products from leaking underground
storage tanks, were also detected in water and soil
samples in the area.

Extensive Cleanup Completed Quickly

The site was referred to EPA's Emergency Response
Program in October 2003  and the Triad process continued
to facilitate the design and application of measures to
capture the coal tar and eliminate its flow to the river. The
remedy was implemented by the potentially responsible
party (PRP) under a CERCLA consent order less than
two years after the start of the TEA. Throughout the
cleanup process, the Colorado Department of Public
Health and  Environment was involved. The city entered
into the state's Voluntary Cleanup Program, which
provides technical support to facilitate cleanups and
provide assurances against regulatory enforcement. This
ensured that any remaining issues related to the former
landfill site were addressed to the state's satisfaction.

In all, the cleanup of the coal tar cost the PRP $8.8
million. It involved removing and disposing  of
approximately 30,000 cubic yards of contaminated
sediment and bedrock over a 400 to 600-foot area of the
Poudre River, to a depth of about 14 feet. A permanent vertical barrier wall was then installed that measures
700 feet in length  along the river bank and extends to 30 feet below the original ground surface. The top of
this wall  has been covered with soil and is not visible. Ground water control wells and sump pumps were
constructed to keep contaminants from migrating around the wall. An on-site water treatment system was also
put in place to remove coal tar and other dissolved contaminants from the groundwater along the barrier wall,
before discharging it into the river. Operation of this system will continue for many years to stop coal tar from
migrating to the Poudre River.
   $135,000 in contractual support from an EPA
   Region 8 Targeted Brownfields Assessment
   Colorado Department of Public Health and
   Environment (CDPHE) Voluntary Cleanup
   Program
   EPA Brownfields and Land Revitalization
   Technology Support Center
   EPA Region 8 Site Assessment Program
   EPA Region 8 Emergency Response Program
   EPA Region 8 Office of Communications and
   Public Involvement
   EPA Region 8 Legal Enforcement Program
   EPA Region 8 Laboratory

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                                                        TRIAD APPROACH COMPONENTS
Redevelopment Strategy Comes Full Circle with a
LEED Gold Certified Community Center

Over time, the river is being restored to its natural
condition as trees and grasses planted in the Spring of
2005 continue to grow. The Fort Collins community was
and continues to be involved in the restoration planning
for the riverbank.

The  city's goal of expanding the Northside Aztlan Center
has also been realized, by developing a new community
center on the parking lot of the original building (which
was  demolished).  In order to prevent future damage to the
foundation, the new building was constructed onto 300
supports placed into the site's bedrock. An active venting
system was also designed. On November 30, 2007, the
new  $8.625 million, 48,000-square-foot multipurpose
recreation facility (more than three times its original size)
opened its doors to the public. The center is home to a
wide variety of classes, sports and events, with amenities
such as a triple gymnasium, workout facilities, lounge,
game room,  computer lab, classrooms and connections
to the Poudre River Trail. In November 2008, the site's
beloved skate park, which had been closed since the
removal  action began in 2004, was finally reopened. This
redevelopment was funded through a  City of Fort Collins
sales tax used to finance such projects.

Beyond its value as a community asset, the new
Northside Aztlan Community Center has the distinct
honor of being recognized as the first Leadership in
Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold certified
community center in the United States. It is estimated that the facility's green components will save the City of
Fort  Collins over $20,000 per year. These green components include: an energy-efficient building shell, HVAC
and lighting systems that will contribute to annual energy savings of more than 30 percent, efficient plumbing
fixtures that contribute to indoor water savings of 44 percent (720,700 gallons per year), native and adapted
plant species and high-efficiency irrigation systems that contribute to outdoor water savings of 52 percent, and
heat-reflective roofing to reduce cooling costs.

This project highlights how city revitalization efforts, EPA funding, and use of the Agency's Triad approach can
help  to clean up and reuse contaminated property. Not only does Fort Collins now have improved water quality
and habitat within and along the banks of the Poudre River, but the city has also been able to reach its goal of
expanding the Northside Aztlan Community Center, and doing so in a sustainable way.
                                                        Systematic Planning:
                                                        Identifies key decisions to be made and develops a
                                                        conceptual site model (CSM) that includes approaches
                                                        to evaluate decisions and manage uncertainty.
                                                        Dynamic Work Strategies:
                                                        Incorporates flexibility to change or adapt to
                                                        information generated by real-time measurement
                                                        technologies. As information is gathered it is used to
                                                        make decisions about what activities will best resolve
                                                        remaining data and decision uncertainties, and/or
                                                        meet cleanup goals.
                                                        Real-Time Measurement Technologies:
                                                        Utilizes data generation mechanisms that support
                                                        real-time decision-making by returning results quickly
                                                        enough to influence the progress of data collection
                                                        and field activities.
For additional information, please contact:
City of Fort Collins, CO Regulatory and Government Affairs: (970) 221-6700 • www.fcgov.com/recreation/north-aztlan.php
Region 8 Brownfields Program: (303) 312-7074 • www.epa.gov/region8/brownfields
4>EPA
                        United States
                        Environmental Protection
                        Agency
Region 8
Brownfields
EPA 908-A-09-003
      May 2009

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