i\eturn to Use Initiative
2009 Demonstration Project
Woolfolk Chemical:
Fort Valley, Georgia
THE SITE: For more than 80 years, a variety of agricultural pesticides
were produced at the Woolfolk Chemical Plant in Fort Valley, Georgia.
Over time, chemicals used in the plant's daily operations seeped into the
soil and polluted underlying ground water. In 1990, high levels of
arsenic and other contaminants led to EPA's listing 31 acres as the
Woolfolk Chemical Superfund site on its National Priorities List. To
address contamination, EPA divided the site into five operable units
(OUs). Subsequent remedial activities at these OUs included installing
a ground water treatment plant, capping contaminated materials,
excavating and treating contaminated soils and sediments, removing
contaminants exceeding cleanup goals, and decontaminating or
demolishing contaminated buildings. Contaminated residential
properties were purchased, and 22 households were permanently
relocated by Canadyne Georgia Corporation, the potentially responsible
party at the site. Other residences were found to have contaminated soil
in yards around the houses and dust in attics. Soil was excavated from
these properties, and attics were decontaminated. A drainage ditch
leading away from the former facility was also found to be
contaminated. Investigations are underway to characterize the extent of
this contamination. Once completed, a remedy will be selected to
properly address the problem.
THE OPPORTUNITY: Once cleanup was complete, the properties
that made up OU2 were redeveloped into the Peach County Public
Library and the Troutman House - a tourist information center, and
office space for local government agencies. The approximately 18 acres
that make up OUS are located in the heart of downtown Fort Valley.
After the successful redevelopment of OU2, community members were
anxious to find ways to put the OUs back to use.
THE BARRIERS: Moving a Superfund site into reuse can be a
complex process. To plan for successful redevelopment at the site EPA
and the Woolfolk stakeholders needed to remain engaged throughout
the cleanup process. Because the site was located at the center of town
residents worried about the impact of the site on their health, their
Cleanup underway at the Woolfolk Chemical
site.
Barrier: Community concerns
about contamination and stigma;
communication hurdles among
stakeholders regarding remedial
process and reuse possibilities
Solution: Reuse planning process
and ongoing community group
meetings
Peach County Public Library on OU2 of the
Woolfolk Chemical site.
Before: Former industrial site at the
heart of downtown
After: Reuse is occurring at cleaned
up portions of the site and reuse plans
are in place at others; reuse options
and limitations are well understood by
community
United States
Environmental Protection
'iiperfund Redevelopment Initiative
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Woolfolk Alliance community meeting
economic stability, and the safety of redevelopment. These concerns
needed to be addressed. Appropriate reuses for OU3 also needed to
be determined. To successfully address these challenges, stakeholders
involved at the site needed to establish and maintain effective
communication methods.
THE SOLUTION: Residents of Fort Valley formed two groups
whose purpose was to disseminate site details and progress to the rest
of community and plan for the property's reuse. The minority
community created the Woolfolk Citizens Response Group (WCRG),
a group of concerned citizens who have been meeting now for 12
years. The second group, the Woolfolk Alliance, includes members of
the WCRG, elected officials, state legislative representatives, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease
Registry, state, and county health department officials, and local business owners. The Alliance meets every
other month to discuss the current status of the Woolfolk Site. EPA awarded WCRG a Technical Assistance
Grant (TAG), part of which it used to participate more effectively in a community based reuse planning process
at the site. During the reuse planning process, land use planners, residents, local government, and EPA
collaborated to determine viable future land uses that were in accord with the community's vision and EPA's
cleanup goals. The reuse planning process has enabled the community, stakeholders, and the local government
to work closely with EPA and voice their concerns and their hopes for the site once the cleanup is complete.
THE SITE NOW: Once cleanup is complete at OU3, approximately 11 acres will be available for
unrestricted use and five to seven acres will require pavement. The reuse planning team developed three
potential mixed-use scenarios for reusing OU3 at the Woolfolk Superfund site. EPA anticipates that the
cleanup at OU3 will be complete in 2010, which will open up the possibility of making one of the reuse
scenarios a reality at the site. Current plans for site reuse include a new building to provide climatically
controlled storage for paper records from several government sources and the library and a new satellite facility
building for the Fort Valley State University. What began as an incredibly challenging situation has become a
source of pride and accomplishment for the Fort Valley community. In the words of Fort Valley Mayor John
Stumbo, "Many of us have been working on this project since the beginning over twelve years ago. By meeting
together, sharing our feelings, eating lunch together, being aware of some of the personal and family issues of
those attending, we established a community. That relationship is helping us to solve our problems and built
trust through what is, in the best of times, a very difficult process. There will be life after Superfund here."
FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT: Charles King, Remedial Project Manager, at (404)
562-8931 or king.charlesl@epa.gov: or Bill Denman, Region 4 Superfund Redevelopment Coordinator, at (404)
562-8939 or denman.bill@epa.gov.
Also, access a short video about the site at: http://www.epa.gov/superfund/programs/recycle/info/aftersf.html.
United Sta
Environmental Protection
Agency
Superfund Redevelopment Initiative
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