RETURN TO USE INITIATIVE 2011 Demonstration Project HIGHWAY 71/72 REFINERY: Bossier City, Louisiana HE SI E: The approximately 215-acre Highway 71/72 Refinery site (the Site), also called the Oid Citgo Refinery or the Arkansas Fuel Oil Refinery, is located near the intersections of Louisiana State Highways 71 and 72 in Bossier City, Louisiana. Between 1923 and 1929, the Louisiana Oil Refining Corporation (LORECO) built a refinery for the production of home heating and fuel oil. The refinery ceased operations sometime between 1944 and 1948, but the Site continued to serve as a petroleum storage and distribution facility. In the mid-1950s, the refinery equipment was dismantled, removed and sold, and in the mid-1960s, on-site construction began for interstate highway corridor I-20. In 1966, the site owner, Cities Services Company (CSC), undertook cleanup work, though later investigations revealed the need for further necessary cleanup responses to address buried sludge deposits, high concentrations of lead in the soil and numerous abandoned pipelines and foundation remnants. Soon after CSC's initial remediation and construction of the I-20 corridor, the Site's redevelopment led to the existing urban landscape with single-family homes, apartments and commercial businesses. After discovery of soil and ground water contamination in the mid- 1980s, EPA and community leaders worked together to implement a cleanup approach that would be acceptable to the existing community located on and around the Site. The cleanup plan included contaminated material removal; ground water remediation, monitoring and use restrictions; indoor air pollution mitigation; and any necessary corrective action for all site-related contamination discovered during future earthmoving operations. On February 13,1995, EPA proposed that the Site to be placed on the National Priorities List (NPL) and promptly thereafter, remedial negotiations began with Glenn Springs Holdings, Inc. (GSH), the party acting on behalf of the potentially responsible party (PRP), CanadianOxy Offshore Production Company (COPCO). EPA did not finalize the Site on the NPL; it is being addressed using the Superfund Alternative (SA) approach, which uses the same investigation, cleanup process and standards that are used for sites listed on the NPL. The SA approach is an alternative to listing a site on the NPL; it is not an alternative to Superfund or the Superfund process. PICTURED: An aerial view of the Site before demolition, (source: Google Earth) BARRIER: Redevelopers needed more information about how to address remaining on-site contamination during construction of a new national brand hotel. SOLUTION: Close coordination between parties allowed EPA. LDEQ and GSH to seize opportunities to address previously inaccessible on-site waste during redevelopment efforts and provide added vapor intrusion protection, allowing Dimension Development Company to safely redevelop the property into a new local amenity. PICTURED: Demolition at the Site in August 2011. (source: EPA) BEFORE: Dated hotel structure restricted access to decades-old refinery wastes. AFTER: Brand new hotel complex under construction on a fully cleaned-up property with added vapor intrusion protection. oEPA United States Environmental Protection Agency Superfund Redevelopment Initiative November 2012 1 ------- THE OPPORTUNITY: The Site is located near the intersection of two busy highways and has been developed with private residences, commercial businesses and light industrial establishments, all of which cover a large portion of the Site. Pavement and buildings cover over one-half of the Site. Recently, EPA suspected refinery waste material was located beneath a former hotel. However, investigation of the area could not be accomplished without demolishing the overlying hotel structure. When the real estate development company, Dimension Development Company, chose to pursue a different investment strategy for the hotel property, they decided to demolish the former hotel structure, replacing it with a new, state-of-the-art, national brand hotel complex. Demolition would enable EPA to gain access to, characterize and remove any refinery waste situated below the original hotel structure, ensuring the long-term protectiveness of the Site and the continued safe reuse of this property. BARRIERS: Dimension Development Company needed additional information about its role and responsibilities as a property developer on a former refinery site. While the developers were eager to build on the property, the company understood that environmental concerns would need to be addressed during the demolition and construction. Dimension Development Company was interested in building a new hotel complex in an environmentally responsible manner. THE SOLUTION: When Dimension Development Company came forward to discuss future demolition and construction plans for the area, GSH, EPA and Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (LDEQ) recognized the opportunity to investigate and sample soil and refinery waste material located beneath the original hotel structure and parking lot. If sampling indicated that refinery waste material had contaminated soil to levels above the required cleanup standards, the materials could be removed and properly disposed of prior to construction of the new hotel complex. Preliminary soil sampling results indicated that levels of contamination in soil were greater than the required cleanup standards. As a result, all parties actively communicated and worked together to remove and properly dispose of all refinery waste material in the area prior to construction of the new hotel complex. Surveyors identified areas where the developer's engineering plans indicate below ground structures will be built, such as elevator shafts, swimming pools and sign anchors. Remedial workers excavated test pits in these areas in order to address any contamination. The site developer is also performing a structural evaluation to determine the extent of excavation necessary to stably support the planned buildings for the Site. After the developer completes soil and structural stability testing, construction efforts will continue with the administration of a vapor intrusion barrier to the foundation of the new, national brand hotel properties. GSH volunteered to apply this vapor intrusion barrier to provide further long-term protection for the new buildings. THE SITE NOW: The successful collaboration of GSH, EPA, LDEQ and Dimension Development Company has resulted in several ongoing redevelopment projects. Construction of the new hotel complex began in November 2011 and is scheduled for completion in December 2012. The complex will include an extended stay national brand hotel, a second national brand hotel, a swimming pool and a courtyard area. Throughout construction efforts, EPA, LDEQ, GSH and Dimension Development Company continue to work together to ensure the Site's remedy remains protective for the continued safe reuse of the property. FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT: Laura Stankosky, Remedial Project Manager, at stankoskv.laura@epa.aov or (214) 665-7525; Casey Luckett-Snyder, Region 6 Superfund Redevelopment Coordinator, at luckett.casev@epa.aov or (214) 665-7393, or Janetta Coats, Community Involvement Coordinator, at coats.ianetta@epa.aov or (214) 665-7308. &EPA United States Environmental Protection Agency Superfund Redevelopment Initiative November 2012 2 ------- |