SEPA
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Office of Emergency and
Remedial Response
(5201 G)
July 2000
Superfund Redevelopment
Coeur d'Alene River Basin
Panhandle Health District I, ID
Pilots
EPA's Superfund Redevelopment Initiative (SRI) is a nationally coordinated effort to facilitate the return of Superfund
sites to productive use by selecting response actions consistent with anticipated use. The SRI Pilots are intended to
help local governments enhance their involvement in the Superfund decision-making process by assisting EPA in
predicting future land uses for Superfund sites. Under the Pilot Program, EPA will provide up to $100,000 in financial
assistance and/or services to local governments for specified activities. Applicants are offered several types of program
assistance, including funding through a cooperative agreement, access to facilitation services, and/or the availability of
personnel under the Intergovernmental Personnel Act (IPA).
BACKGROUND
EPA selected the Panhandle Health District I in Shoshone
County, Idaho, for a Superfund Redevelopment Pilot.
Shoshone County is home to the Coeur d'Alene River Basin
Superfund site. Mining began in the region in the late 1800s,
and smelting operations followed in the early 1900s. This area
is referred to as the "Silver Valley" due to its colorful and rich
history of mining for silver, lead, zinc, and gold. For more than
100 years, the lead-silver-zinc mining region on the South
Fork of the Coeur d'Alene River has been a major financial
force in northern Idaho and the inland northwest. However,
the 1980s brought a rapid decline in the silver industry, and
many of the mines and the major smelters began to shut down.
Shoshone County lost thousands of mining industry-related
jobs, resulting in a considerable population decrease over the
course of many years. In September 1983, EPA added the site
to its list of hazardous waste sites needing cleanup. Cleanup
of a 21-square-mile area of the site, referred to as the Bunker
Hill Superfund Site, is nearing completion. However, there are
still potential human health and ecological risks in other areas
of the site because of heavy metals in the soil, sediment,
surface water, and groundwater. Despite outstanding progress
in environmental cleanup and economic growth at the Bunker
Hill site, similar valley-wide efforts continue to be a challenge
because of diverse interests and the overall status of cleanup
activities. Part of the site is in a minority community and is
near a Brownfields Pilot.
OBJECTIVES
Working with the Panhandle Area Council and the Silver
Valley Economic Development Organization, the Panhandle
Health District I will use Pilot funds to help communities
develop and maintain a coordinated, valley-wide approach to
cleanup and reuse of the site. The funding will also help
communities choose land use options, and to create land use
plans that may enhance the economic sustainability of the
region. Shoshone County, government agencies, and
community members will assist the district in this effort.
Because of the size of the site and the number of communities
involved, the district may encounter difficulties in reaching a
consensus on a future vision for the valley.
PILOT SNAPSHOT
Boise
Coeur d'Aler^Kmver Basin

Applicant Name: Panhandle Health
District I, ID
Site Name: Coeur d' Alene River Basin
Date of Award: July 2000
Anticipated Award: Cooperative Agreement
($100,000)
Profile: The Panhandle Health District I will
create a coordinated, valley-wide approach to
cleanup and reuse of the site.
Contacts:
Earl Liverman
U.S. EPA Region 10
(208) 664-4858
liverman.earl@epa.gov
Superfund Hotline:
(800) 424-9346 or
(703) 412-9810
(DC Metro Area)
reuse.info@epa.gov
Visit the EPA Superfund Redevelopment Web site
http://www.epa.gov/superfund/programs/recycle/pilot.htm

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