PETROLEUM PLUME REMEDIATION SITE
Dubuque, IA
Cleanup Grant
Innovative Cleanup Technology used on
Petroleum Plume along Mississippi River
ADDRESS:
PROPERTY SIZE:
FORMER USE:
CURRENT USE:
3rd and Bell Streets, Dubuque, IA5200I
5 acres
Petroleum Storage
Parking Lot
EPA GRANT RECIPIENT:
The City of Dubuque received a
$200,000 EPA Brownfields
Cleanup Grant.
PROJECT PARTNERS:
State of Iowa, other federal partners and
private property owners
Dubuque
IOWA
For additional data and geographic information for this
and other Brownfields Grants, please visit EPA's:
Envirofacts - www.epa.gov/enviro/html/bms/bms query.html
Enviromapper - www.epa.gov/enviro/bf
PROJECT BACKGROUND:
Dubuque, Iowa underwent a transformation with the redevelopment of its port and waterfront area. Situated on the banks of the
Mississippi River, Dubuque's once vibrant industrial and manufacturing port area fell into decline and disrepair. The city's efforts to
redevelop the waterfront have turned the area into America's River Campus, complete with entertainment and recreational venues such
as the Grand Harbor Resort and Waterpark, a riverfront casino, plaza, amphitheater, as well as open space and natural recreational
areas. The city is bringing an innovative technology to bear at a vacant lot used for parking; it is using a Brownfields Cleanup grant to
address a petroleum plume—resulting from former use as an above-ground petroleum storage tank yard—that is contaminating a five-
acre area between the hotel and the riverfront casino. Petroleum hydrocarbons exist in the soil and ground water and in order to return
this property to productive use, cleanup was deemed necessary. Its proximity to the Mississippi River underscores the importance of
addressing the ground water contamination.
Cleanup work on the petroleum plume beginning
at America's River Campus in Dubuque, Iowa
OUTCOME:
KEY ACCOMPLISHMENTS:
• A $200,000 EPA Brownfields Cleanup grant is being used to clean up a petroleum plume
on the property.
• The innovative cleanup remedy—Multi-Arrayed Vacuum (MAV) extraction—has been
successful in injecting 9,000 gallons of peroxide for treatment and extracting 1, 100 gallons
of petroleum hydrocarbons from soil and ground water.
• The cleanup is occurring in situ (i.e., onsite), therefore the technology has minimal impact
on the property and the parking lot is still in use while cleanup continues. Cleanup is
expected to be complete in 2009.
• The project received the 2005 EPA Region 7 Phoenix Award for "Recognition for
Excellence in Brownfield Redevelopment" for the entire America's River Campus project.
The city has successfully implemented a redevelopment vision that is a nationally
recognized model for redevelopment.
Using the MAV extraction technology to address the petroleum plume is helping to protect the natural environment on the waterfront
campus and the Mississippi River, and allowing for additional riverfront development. Once cleanup is complete, the parking lot may be
used to expand the Grand Harbor Resort and Waterpark or to connect the various establishments present on the entire 64-acre
waterfront property. Cleanup of the five-acre petroleum plume is essential to the redevelopment goals of the Phoenix Award winning
America's River Campus. For Dubuque, the overall project represents a major shift from underused industrial waterfront to land that
enhances the beauty of the Mississippi River, the economy, and the quality of life for residents.
FOR MORE INFORMATION: Visit the EPA Brownfields Web site at http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/ or call EPA Region 7 at (913) 551 -7003
------- |