EPA
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Office of Public Affairs
Region 5
77 West Jackson Boulevard
Chicago, Illinois 60604-3590
Illinois, Indiana
Michigan, Minnesota
Ohio, Wisconsin
EPA Answers Questions
Most Often Asked by Residents
West KL Avenue Landfill Superfund Site
Oshtemo Township, Michigan
December 1999
Background
The West KL Avenue Landfill was operated as a
private dump from approximately 1955 to 1960.
In 1960, Oshtemo Township leased the property
from the owner for use as a sanitary landfill. In
1968, the County of Kalamazoo bought the site to
use as a county wide sanitary landfill. In 1979, the
Michigan Department of Environmental Quality
(MDEQ) closed the landfill due to ground-water
contamination. A county-led investigation re-
vealed ground-water contamination in several
monitoring and domestic water wells west and
southwest of the landfill. The KL Avenue Group
(a group of parties potentially responsible for
contamination at the site) provided a safe water
supply to homes affected by the contamination to
protect residents from contact with contaminated
ground water. The county also began monitoring
private wells in the path of ground-water flow
from the landfill.
In October 1998, county monitoring personnel
detected ground-water contamination in the
Springwood Hills Subdivision. In response, the
KL Avenue Group agreed to pay to extend city
water lines to a service zone of homes with
ground-water contamination. The United States
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is cur-
rently working with MDEQ and the KL Avenue
Group to develop a long-term plan for monitoring
ground water and cleanup of the landfill.
Who chose the service zone?
In 1998, MDEQ followed state law and designated
a service zone for the affected area. Designating
the service zone allowed MDEQ to use state money
to provide an alternate water supply.
Why did they choose that zone?
Only homes with contaminated wells are required
to be included in the service zone. Originally, the
service zone included only the wells where site-
related chemicals were detected and wells that were
most likely to become contaminated. After discus-
sions with the KL Avenue Group, additional wells
were added in the area that had no contaminants
detected in the ground water. This resulted in the
current service zone on page 2. The KL Avenue
Group has gone beyond what EPA or MDEQ
legally requires.
Will a health survey be conducted?
The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease
Registries (ATSDR) is working with EPA to deter-
mine whether a health survey is warranted. ATSDR
performs health assessments and health surveys at
Superfund sites. Once the information has been
reviewed, EPA and ATSDR will discuss whether a
health survey is warranted. Results of the discus-
sions will be made available to the public.
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/ live just outside the
service zone. Why am I
not getting city water?
Water in all of the homes outside
the service zone is considered safe
to use. EPA does not have legal
right to force the KL Avenue Group
to connect houses where contami-
nation has not been detected or
where there is not an immediate
threat of contamination.
What is being done to pro-
tect residents in the future?
Will residential wells out-
side the service zone be
tested? If so, where and
how often?
EPA, MDEQ, and the KL Avenue
Group are designing a long-term
monitoring program to locate and
track the contaminated ground
water. The program will include
sampling wells in and near the
service zone. These wells will be
carefully picked to locate the
plume of contaminated ground
water and track its movement. A
plume is contaminated ground
water flowing from a specific
source. Plumes can move vertically
and horizontally. The KL Avenue
Group will survey the ground-water
elevation at selected residential
wells. The survey results will be
used to determine which wells
should be included in the monitoring
program. EPA wants to finalize the
monitoring program within the next
two months.
As part of the monitoring program,
selected wells will be tested four
times a year. The number of tests
Map of Area to Receive City Water
(Service Zone)
Highway M-43 (Main Street)
and number of wells sampled may change. Right now, the wells
associated with the KL Avenue Landfill Site are sampled two
times a year.
What if contamination moves outside the
service zone?
If the contamination moves outside the service zone, EPA will
make sure that residents do not come into contact with unsafe
levels contaminated ground water. If additional houses need
another water supply due to contamination from the landfill, it
will be provided at no cost to the property owner. The KL Avenue
Group will pay for the alternate water supply. This is required by
the legal agreement they signed with EPA.
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People have heard that all the KL Avenue
Group is going to do is extend the water
lines to the current service zone. After this,
there will be no money to do anything else.
The KL Avenue Group agreed to perform the entire
cleanup of the West KL Avenue Landfill Site. This
includes dealing with the entire plume of ground-water
contamination. Providing city water service to the
houses in the Springwood Hills Subdivision is only part
of the work to be done at the site. The KL Avenue
Group will pay for the entire cleanup.
How much does a monitoring well cost?
Prices for well construction varies depending on the
materials used, the depth of the well, type of equipment
used for drilling, etc. EPA and MDEQ estimated the
cost of constructing and outfitting a 200-foot deep well
at $15,000 to $20,000.
Would it be cheaper to connect everyone
to city water?
Connecting more homes to city water would not save
the cost of installing and sampling monitoring wells.
Regardless of how far the water lines are extended,
monitoring wells would have to be installed and
sampled.
What is ground water?
Ground water is water under the ground's surface that
fills spaces in soil or between rocks. It may be used
as a source of drinking water if there is enough and it
is clean. An
aquifer is a
layer of rock,
sand, or
gravel below
the ground
surface
where all
open spaces
between rock
or soil grains
are filled
with water.
What are the depths of the residential and
monitoring wells being tested in the
Springwood Hills area?
Generally, residential wells in the Springwood Hills
area are between 70 and 140 feet deep. The moni-
toring wells in the Springwood Hills area range
from 43 to 220 feet deep.
How deep is the contamination plume?
The depth of the plume may vary from location to
location due to the geology of the area. For example,
the plume in the Springwood Hills area has been
found between 70 and 140 feet deep. It appears that
two layers of clay sandwich and restrict the ground-
water contamination below the subdivision from
moving up or down. Near Dustin Lake, the plume
has been found 200 feet deep. EPA will know more
about the depth of the plume once the long-term
monitoring program gets started.
If I want to have my well tested and pay
for it myself, what type of test should I
request?
In the phone book, look under Environmental and
Ecological Services for a certified water laboratory.
Request a volatile organic compound analysis ac-
cording to EPA test method 524.2. Also request that
they test for tert-butanol and tetrahydrofuran (THF).
How fast is the ground water moving?
How fast are the contaminants moving?
There are two aquifers below the site. The shallow
aquifer is primarily the one affected by the landfill
contamination. Ground water in the shallow aquifer
is flowing at about a foot a day. At one time, it
looked like the ground-water contamination plume
had stopped moving and was shrinking. Several
things were probably affecting the contaminants
movement, including the natural breakdown of the
contaminants, the contaminants adhering to materials
in the aquifer (i.e. rocks, etc.), and/or dilution. EPA
will use the long-term monitoring program to define
and track the plume of contaminated ground water.
Once the plume is defined, EPA will have more
information on how fast it is moving and in what
direction.
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Map of Residential Wells with Measurable Levels of Contamination
(as of November 18, 1999)
Well
No.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
Highest Level of Contaminant
in parts per billion (ppb)
1,2
DCA
3.2
0.7
1.7
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
3.3
0.7
4.3
2.6
TR
2.9
ND
ND
ND
1.1
4.7
ND
ND
1.8
5
ND
16.7
43
47
3
ND
0.5
ND
ND
ND
TR
0.7
1.6
ND
1.4
1
TR
TR
3.1
14
TR
1.7
Vinyl
Cl
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
TR
TR
ND
ND
ND
0.5
ND
4.5
4.1
4.8
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
0.5
1.7
ND
ND
THF
5
7
6
8
50
ND
ND
5
ND
ND
ND
ND
23
32
10
65
ND
ND
ND
12
ND
6
21
7
8
ND
55
120
150
ND
7
7
ND
ND
6
7
8
8
ND
5
9
25
ND
15
59
ND
ND
1,1
DCA
4.8
0.9
3.7
ND
ND
0.9
3.4
1.1
4.3
3.8
ND
19.7
11
5.2
3.3
19.9
0.7
1.9
1
1.1
3.9
ND
5.8
2.2
13.1
0.5
34.1
85
97
4.1
ND
11.5
5.6
0.9
1.1
1.9
2.5
4.3
0.8
5.6
4
7.8
1.9
6.5
20
0.5
4.7
Highway IVM3
I
North
KL Avenue
Landfill
1,2 DCA =
Vinyl Cl =
THF
1,1 DCA =
TR
ND
Key
1,2 Dichloroethane
Vinyl Chloride
Tetrahy drofuran
1,1 Dichloroethane
Trace amount
Non detectable
Note: The numbering system used here is different from
the one used on the Kalamazoo County web site. How-
ever, the numbers follow in the same order. For ex-
ample, Well No. 1 here corresponds with the first well on
the County's list to have one of these four contaminants
detected, and so on.
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Summary of Residential Well Sampling Results
From February 1997 to October 1999, Kalamazoo County collected 285 water samples from residential
wells. The samples were analyzed for the presence of contaminants including 1,2 DCA (1,2
Dichloroethane), Vinyl Cl (Vinyl Chloride), TFIF (Tetrahydrofuran), and 1,1 Dichloroethane. Of the
178 wells sampled, 47 contained contaminants in measurable amounts. The graphs below contain
summary statistics for those 47 wells.
Concentration of 1,2 DCA in Residential Wells
Concentration of Vinyl Chloride in Residential Wells
50-
45-
-Q
O.
.5 35"
1 3°-
-£
]!oncentra
oi 8 &
5-
n-
Drinking Water Standard for 1,2, DCA= 5 ppb
Li i.il i J ill
i
Of the 24 wells, 5 contain levels at or above
drinking water standards.
Concentration in ppb
5-
4.5-
4-
3.5-
3-
2.5-
2-
1.5-
1-
0.5-
1
Drinking Water Standard for Vinyl Cl = 2 ppb
1
1
___^^
Of the 6 wells, 3 contain levels at or above
drinking water standards.
Concentration of THF in Residential Wells
Concentration of 1,1 DCA in Residential Wells
-Q
O.
O.
e
_o
'•E
Crt
£ 100-
-^
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Why, after 20 years, is the landfill not cleaned up?
EPA tries to clean up Superfund sites quickly.
However, with the technical and legal issues in-
volved in a Superfund site, it takes time to deter-
mine the total extent of the contamination problem
and to determine the appropriate remedy for the
site. If the contamination poses an immediate threat
to human health, or the environment, an immediate
action is taken to remove the threat. When it was
determined that private wells were impacted by the
ground-water contamination, clean water was
supplied to those homes.
Since the West KL Avenue Landfill was placed on
the National Priorities List (the list of hazardous
waste sites eligible for investigation and cleanup
under the Superfund program), numerous activities
have taken place. Between 1982 and 1990, EPA did
a study, called a Remedial Investigation/Feasibility
Study, to find out what contaminants were present,
where they were, and to evaluate cleanup options.
A cleanup plan was selected for the site in 1990.
This plan included covering the landfill with clay
and pumping out and treating the ground water.
Between 1990 and 1992, EPA negotiated with the
numerous parties thought to be responsible for the
contamination to get them to do the cleanup. In
1992, the KL Avenue Group and EPA entered into a
Consent Order. This order requires the KL Avenue
Group to do the cleanup. The Consent Order also
required the KL Avenue Group to further study the
extent of the ground-water contamination. Those
studies took place between 1990 and 1994. In 1994,
the KL Avenue Group approached EPA with a plan to
see if the contamination is naturally breaking down.
Information from the studies showed that the con-
taminants might be breaking down naturally in the
landfill and ground water. If the contaminants were
breaking down naturally in the landfill, then putting
the clay on top of the landfill might stop this natural
process. If contaminants were breaking down natu-
rally in the ground water, then pumping and treating
of the ground water might not be necessary. The
cleanup remedy was put on hold while EPA and the
KL Avenue Group studied the natural breakdown
theory. Since that time, the KL Avenue Group has
been conducting studies on the ground water and
waste in the landfill to see if the plume had stopped
moving and/or was shrinking. The studies were also
to determine if the contaminants in the landfill were
breaking down. Those studies are on-going. Within
the next year or so, EPA hopes to conclude the stud-
ies. EPA will then decide if putting the clay on top of
the landfill and pumping and treating the ground
water are appropriate cleanup remedies for the site or
if newer technologies might work better.
How long have people been drinking the
contaminated water in Springwood Hills?
Unfortunately, EPA does not have enough informa-
tion to answer this question. Once the ground-water
flow patterns are determined, it might be possible to
determine when the contamination reached the
Springwood Hills Subdivision. It may never be
possible to provide a good answer to that question.
The table on page 4 and the graphs on page 5 show
information on the maximum levels of contamination
found in the Springwood Hills area. It is important to
note that the majority of the wells tested had no
contamination detected in them.
Is Springwood Lake contaminated?
The surface water of Springwood Lake was
sampled on August 27, 1999. No contaminants
were detected.
Is Dustin Lake contaminated?
Studies show no impact on Dustin Lake from
ground-water contamination due to the landfill.
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Are there any municipal wells in
Oshtemo Township? If so, are they
affected?
There are no municipal wells in Oshtemo Township.
More importantly, there are no municipal wells in
the path of the flow of the ground water from the
West KL Avenue Landfill. The closest municipal
wells are to the east and in a different watershed.
How are vacant lots being addressed?
Free hook up to city water will only be provided to
owners that applied for well permits prior to MDEQ
establishing the service zone.
Availability Sessions
EPA will hold an availability session in February
to explain the on-going water line installation as
well as the investigation and cleanup of the land-
fill and ground water. Availability sessions are
informal, open-house style meetings during which
members of the community can meet one-on-one
with EPA representatives.
Date: Wednesday, February 9, 2000
Location: Oshtemo Township Building
7275 W. Main Street
Kalamazoo, MI
Time: 5:30 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Mailing List
If you did not receive this fact sheet in the mail, you are not on
our mailing list. If you would like to receive fact sheets,
progress reports, and community meeting information for the
West KL Avenue Landfill Superfund Site, please complete this
form and mail to:
Jennifer Ostermeier
Community Involvement Coordinator
Office of Public Affairs (P-19J)
EPA Region 5
77 West Jackson Boulevard
Chicago, IL 60604-3590
Name
Address _
City
State
Phone
Affiliation
Email
Zip
E-Mail List
If you would like to be placed on our email distribution list
for the West KL Avenue Landfill Site, please add you email
address above. This will allow us to send you information on
the site as it becomes available.
Questions?
If you have a question that was not answered in this fact
sheet, send, email, or phone your question to Jennifer
Ostermeier, and we will try and answer it in future fact
sheets.
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Contact Information
Jennifer Ostermeier
Community Involvement Coordinator
Office of Public Affairs (P-19J)
EPA Region 5
77 West Jackson Boulevard
Chicago, IL 60604-3590
Phone: (312) 353-0618 or
(800)621-8431 ext. 30618
Fax: (312)353-1155
Email: ostermeier.j ennifer@epa.gov
Tim Prendiville
Remedial Project Manager
Office of Superfund (SR-6J)
EPA Region 5
77 West Jackson Boulevard
Chicago, IL 60604-3590
Phone: (312)886-5122
(800)621-8431 ext. 65122
Fax: (312)353-5541
Email: prendiville.timothy@epa.gov
Mark Henry
Project Manager
Environmental Response Division
MDEQ
KNAPPS Centre
P.O. Box 30426
Lansing, MI 48909-7926
Phone: (517)335-3390
Fax: (517)335-4887
Email: henryma@state.mi.us
Information Repository
EPA has established a file called an
information repository for the West KL
Avenue Landfill Superfund Site. The
information repository contains docu-
ments related to the project and the
Superfund Program. The repository is
located at:
Oshtemo Branch
Kalamazoo Public Library
7265 West Main Street
Kalamazoo, MI
Web Sites
This and additional updates can also
be found on the following web sites:
www.kalcounty.com
Click on Department Services,
Human Services Department, and
then What's New to reach informa-
tion listed under Springwood Lake.
www.epa.gov/region5/sites/
Scroll through the list to find West
KL Avenue Landfill Superfund Site.
oEPA
Official Business
Penalty for Private Use - $300
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Region 5
Office of Public Affairs (P-19J)
77 West Jackson Boulevard
Chicago, IL 60604-3590
Reproduced on Recycled Paper
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