Remedial Action Activities Progress Report Tar Creek Superfund Site Operable Units 2 and 4 Ottawa County Oklahoma September 2014


Remedial Action Activities Progress Report
Tar Creek Superfund Site, Operable Units 2 and 4
Ottawa County, Oklahoma	September 2014
vvEPA
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
This Progress Report will tell you about...
•	The progress of remedial actions at Operable Unit 2
(OU2) and Operable Unit 4 (OU4);
•	Remedial action work conducted by the Quapaw Tribe
of Oklahoma;
•	Superfund Job Training Initiative program successes;
•	EPA's efforts to protect public safety by addressing
abandoned mine shafts and subsidence features; and
•	Promoting sustainability by recycling site materials.
Remedial action protects human health
In July 2010, EPA began the final phase of work to clean
up lead contaminated residential driveways, yards, public
alleyways and parks on properties in Miami, Afton,
Commerce, Fairland, Narcissa, North Miami, Peoria,
Quapaw, and Wyandotte (OU2). Since September 1, 2010,
when the final phase began, 576 properties have been
cleaned up. Since the cleanup of residential properties
began, approximately 2,887 residential yards and public
properties in Ottawa County have been cleaned up. As a
result of the public's participation in this effort, a healthier
environment exists for families to enjoy now and in the
years to come.
The implementation of the remedial action for Operable
Unit 4 (OU4) began in January 2010. The removal of mine
and mill waste in distal areas, where access was granted,
started in January 2010. To date, more than 2.15 million
tons of mine and mill wastes and contaminated soil have
been removed from properties in distal areas. More than
570 acres of land have been cleaned up and made available
for future reuse. Though EPA does not own any chat and
will not purchase any chat, EPA helped facilitate chat sales
which was a component of the remedy. In 2013, 17 percent
of the source materials removed were purchased by local
processors (with transport provided by EPA), and the
processors compensated the property owners directly.
The cleanup efforts at OUs 2 and 4 protect human health,
especially the health of young children, and the
environment.
Quapaw Tribe performs the Remedial Action
at the Catholic 40
On October 1, 2012, a Cooperative Agreement was signed
between EPA and the Quapaw Tribe of Oklahoma to
perform remedial action work at the "Catholic 40". The
Catholic 40 is a 40-acre tract of land owned by the
Quapaw Tribe that has cultural and historical significance.
Historical structures include remnants of a Catholic
Church and school constructed in 1893. The remedial
action involved the excavation, hauling, and disposal of
approximately 107,000 tons of source material or chat.
The Quapaw Tribe Environmental Office began hauling
chat at the site in mid-December 2013. Extra precautions
were taken during these activities in the areas near the
historical structures to prevent damage. The remedial
action included restoration (for example, contouring,
seeding) of the Site and bank stabilization of Beaver Creek
to ensure the integrity of the remedy. Beaver Creek also
has cultural and historical significance to the Quapaw
Tribe.
Superfund Job Training Initiative, local
labor utilization benefits regional economy
Job creation is just one component of this project's impact
on the local economy. EPA continues to work with project
contractors to implement the Superfund Job Training
Initiative (Super JTI) in Northeast Oklahoma. Super JTI
provides job-readiness training and employment
opportunities for underserved citizens living in
communities affected by Superfund sites. The Tar Creek
program generated 250 interested candidates of which 26
were selected for training. A number of graduates were
hired by project contractors and others are awaiting the
award of new contracts with hopes of being hired.
A success story we have related to this program involves a
graduate that has worked on OU4 site projects since 2010.
As a result of his outstanding performance, he was hired as
a full time employee by EPA's contractor CH2M HILL in
July 2010. When current site remediation activities wrap
up, he will have opportunities for other work, including
OU2.
The OU4 and OU2 remedial actions have also provided
economic benefits to the local community beyond the sales
and marketing of chat. For example, from July 2013
through April 2014, local staff utilization on the Distal 7
North portion of the OU4 remedial action was over 80% of
the construction labor, and over 45% of the construction
subcontract awards have been made to small
disadvantaged businesses, including veteran-owned and
woman-owned businesses. For OU2, 40% of construction
subcontract awards have gone to small disadvantaged
businesses, including woman-owned businesses. These

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workers have been helping the local economy by spending
funds with local vendors.
EPA is solving two problems at once and
helping eliminate hazards from abandoned
mine shafts and subsidence features
Addressing abandoned mine shafts and subsidence features
is not a specific goal related to reducing the risks of
exposure associated with mining-related contamination.
However, EPA has taken advantage of utilizing the
presence of abandoned mine shafts and subsidence
features for the placement of source materials. By
placement and capping of the source materials in these
features, the footprint of contamination is reduced, and the
risk of exposure and the risk of open holes to people and
livestock are reduced. In 2013 alone, over 8 percent of
source materials removed were placed and capped in
onsite subsidence features and/or mine shafts. Since
remediation began, over 150 abandoned mine shafts have
been filled and capped to reduce the risk of exposure to
site contaminants.
Reuse of site materials
Sustainability through re-use or recycling of site materials
is another focus for the remedial action. Trees removed
from the work areas during construction are segregated
from other wastes to allow re-use and recycling where
possible. Root balls from vegetative clearing may have
contaminated soil attached, and are transported to the
Central Mill Repository, but waste trees and other wood
debris are available for mulching. Sampling and analysis
of the chipped waste tree and wood debris material is
performed, and results indicate concentrations of lead,
cadmium and zinc are well below the cleanup goals and
Regional Screening Levels for residential soil. From the
Distal 7 North site alone, over 2,000 cubic yards of mulch
was provided to a local company for use as mulch.
Remedial activities at the Distal 7 South site have yielded
2,115 cubic yards of mulch.
For more information
For more information about the Tar Creek Site, contact:
Ursula Lennox, Remedial Project Manager OU4
U.S. EPA Region 6
214.665.6743 or 1.800.533.3508 (toll-free)
lennox.ursula@epa.gov
Rafael Casanova, Remedial Project Manager
Catholic 40
U.S. EPA Region 6
214.665.7437 or 1.800.533.3508 (toll free)
casanova.rafael@epa.gov
Robert Sullivan, Remedial Project Manager OU1 and
OU2
U.S. EPA Region 6
214.665.2223 or 1.800.533.3508 (toll free)
sullivan.robert@epa.gov
Katrina Higgins-Coltrain, Remedial Project Manager
OU5
U.S. EPA Region 6
214.665.8143 or 1.800.533.3508 (toll free)
coltrain.katrina@epa.gov
Janetta Coats, Community Involvement Coordinator
U.S. EPA Region 6
214.665.7308 or 1.800.533.3508 (toll-free)
coats .j anetta@epa.gov
Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality
Dennis Datin, P.E. 405.702.5125
David Cates, P.E. 405.702.5124
Quapaw Tribe of Oklahoma Environmental
Department
Tim Kent, Director	918.542.1853
Craig Kreman, Assistant Director 918.542.1853
Information Repositories
The Administrative Record, including the Records of
Decision, for the Tar Creek Superfund Site is available at
the following locations:
Miami Public Library
200 North Main St.
Miami, OK 74354
918.542.3064
Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality
707 North Robinson
Oklahoma, City, OK 73102
405.702.1000
The Record of Decision for the Tar Creek Superfund Site,
OU4 is also available on the Internet at:
http://www.epa.gov/region6/6sf/6sf-decisiondocs.htm
All inquiries from the news media should be directed to
the Region 6 Press Office at 214.665.2200.
Information about the Tar Creek Site also can be found on
the U.S. EPA Region 6 Superfund website at:
http://www.epa.gov/region6/6sf/oklahoma/tar creek/
index.htm

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oEPA
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Region 6
1445 Ross Ave. (6SF-VO)
Dallas, TX 75202

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