009 Demonstration Project
Benfield Industries:
Waynesville, North Carolina
THE SITE: The Benfield Industries site occupies approximately 3.5 acres of
a 6-acre parcel of land on the floodplain of Richland Creek in Waynesville,
North Carolina. The site housed a furniture and mattress manufacturing
facility and a lumber treatment facility from the 1940s until the mid-1970s. A
plant that mixed and packaged bulk organic and inorganic chemicals occupied
the site from 1976 until a fire destroyed the facility in 1982. In 1985, the
North Carolina Division of Health Services detected high concentrations of
polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the soil and ground water, and EPA added
the site to the Superfund National Priorities List in 1989. Remedial action
initiated in 1996 included excavation, soil washing, and land farming of
contaminated soils. All excavated soils were returned to the site and covered
with one foot of clean fill in 2000. A ground water extraction system was
installed in 2001 to safeguard against vapor intrusion. The second Five-Year
Review was conducted in 2008 and, based on the reduced emissions at the site,
recommended that the pump system transition to monitored natural
attenuation.
THE OPPORTUNITY: Haywood Vocational Opportunities (HVO), an
organization providing employment opportunities and vocational training to
persons with disabilities, occupied a neighboring parcel of land and was
interested in expanding its facilities. The vacant Benfield site would allow for a
simple expansion.
THE BARRIER: Constructing a facility that would meet EPA criteria, as
well as site-use and state restrictions presented a unique challenge to
redeveloping the site. On-site construction required additional fill, workers
digging at certain depth to wear protective gear, and navigating monitoring
wells in place. In addition, back taxes were owed on the property.
THE SOLUTION: Through thorough communication with EPA's remedial
team, HVO was well-informed about the contamination, remedy, and treatment
timeline for the site prior to purchasing the land. This close working
relationship between HVO and EPA reinforced the Company's confidence in
purchasing the property. EPA advised HVO on liability issues associated with
the purchase. After purchasing the property, HVO consulted with EPA and
raised its purchase offer to avoid windfall lien expenses and cover back taxes.
EPA and HVO were also able to coordinate the cleanup timeline closely with
the new construction timeline.
The 1982 fire at the Benfield Industries site.
(Source: Waynesville NC Fire Department
website)
Barrier: Aligning redevelopment
construction with site use criteria
Solution: Close collaboration between
EPA and site stakeholders
Aerial view of Haywood Vocational
Opportunities facility.
Before: Vacant, cleaned up former
industrial site in mixed use
community
After: Expanded training and
employment facility for persons with
disabilities
.
'perfund Redevelopment Initiative
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THE SITE NOW: Redevelopment of the Benfield Industries site was completed in 2004. The site now houses the
esthetically designed, expanded Haywood Vocational Opportunities training and employment facilities. Accordingly to
George Marshall, President of HVO, reuse has provided significant economic benefits for the community, increasing HVO
sales revenues by 33%, and creating approximately 90 full-time jobs. Mr. Marshall also relayed that "the greatest benefit
of this site's reuse could be that an eyesore of a fenced off, overgrown property was transformed into an architecturally
beautiful building, and naturally landscaped asset to the community."
FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT: Jon Bornholm, Remedial Project Manager and Region 4
Superfund Redevelopment Coordinator, at (404) 562-8820 or bornholm.jon@epa.gov.
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Superfund Redevelopment Initiative
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