RETURN TO USE INITIATIVE 2010 Demonstration Project COALINGA ASBESTOS MINE: Fresno County, California THE SITE: The Coalinga Asbestos Mine Superfund site (the Site) is a 120-acre tract of land located in upper Pine Canyon, in western Fresno County, California, The Site is split into two operable units (OUs): the Johns-Manville Mill (JMM) OU and the City OU. The City OU is also part of the neighboring Superfund site, the Atlas Asbestos Mine site. Southern Pacific Railroad processed asbestos at the Site from 1959 to 1962, and Coalinga Asbestos Company leased part of the land, continuing asbestos milling operations from 1962 to mid-1974. From November 1975 until 1981, Coalinga Asbestos Company assigned the lease to the Marmac Resource Company/Mareco, which operated a chromite mill on the future JMM OU. In 1984, the Site was listed on the Superfund National Priorities List (NPL) after elevated levels of asbestos in an aqueduct near Los Angeles were attributed to the Site. The 1990 Coalinga Asbestos Mine Record of Decision (ROD) established a remedial objective to minimize the release of asbestos into the air and local streams. The ROD required several remedial actions as well as site access restrictions and deed restrictions to limit future uses at the Site. Remedial actions included the construction of a fence around the mine perimeter, the dismantling of mill buildings and debris disposal, road paving, removal or capping of contaminated soils and construction of a cross-canyon stream diversion pipe. The Site's potentially responsible parties agreed to implement the selected remedy. The construction of the Site's remedy was completed and operating properly in 1995. EPA removed the Site from the NPL in April 1998. THE OPPORTUNITY: The completion of cleanup activities had already enabled the redevelopment of portions of the Site which did not require deed PICTURED: Cleanup activities allowed for the commercial and residential redevelopment of some areas of the Site in the 1990s, (source: EPA) BARRIERS: A change in the asbestos cleanup standard used in the Site's 1990 Record of Decision raised questions about the continued protectiveness of the Site's remedy. SOLUTION: An innovative activity-based sampling technique and risk analysis determined that the Site's remedy remains protective. - - I n J 1 i W : 1 1 F | PICTURED: Northwestern entrance to the waste management unit that will be subject to institutional control requirements, (source: EPA) BEFORE: The protectiveness of the Site's remedy was in question and institutional controls needed to be implemented for a portion of the Site. AFTER: The Site's remedy has undergone substantial new testing and been determined to be protective. Institutional controls appear close to being put in place. Together, these actions will enhance the redevelopment potential of the Site. United States Environmental Protection Superfund Redevelopment Initiative 1—J § m Agency kAgency Updated: August 2010 1 ------- restrictions. New construction on the Site included a department store, a 43-unit apartment complex and a 47-lot subdivision, which brought both new jobs and housing to the area. Now with remedy construction complete and Site deleted from the NPL, the City of Coalinga needed to implement a deed restriction to fulfill the institutional control requirements on the waste management unit for both the Site and the Atlas Asbestos Mine site. The deed restriction, a legal instrument required as part of the Site's remedy, would not only ensure the protection of human health and the environment. By clarifying the Site's availability for reuse, the deed restriction could also encourage the redevelopment of other parts of the Site. BARRIERS: At the time of remedy selection for the City OU, EPA had a cleanup goal of less than one area-percent threshold for asbestos, which was considered protective of human health and the environment and was consistent with regulatory requirements. In 1994, EPA issued a Directive that stated that risk-based, site-specific action levels should be used for soils with low levels of asbestos. The 2006 Five-Year Review of both the Site and the Atlas Asbestos Mine site recommended future testing to ensure that the remedies for both sites remained protective. This testing also delayed progress on the City of Coalinga's efforts to implement a deed restriction for the Site's waste management unit. THE SOLUTION: In November 2007, an EPA Environmental Response Team collected approximately 110 soil samples from designated areas in the Site's City OU and other reference locations on site, the Atlas Asbestos Mine site, and adjacent properties. EPA used a new, activity- based sampling method, which relies on the raking of soii plots and use of pumps to measure airborne breathable asbestos levels. The results of this innovative approach allowed EPA to determine that the Site's remedy remains protective. THE SITE NOW: Site areas were retested, the Site's remedy was found to be protective, and plans to implement the deed restriction for the Site's waste management unit are proceeding. Together, these actions are expected to support future reuse plans for both the Site and the Atlas Asbestos Mine site. PICTURED: The Ridegeview Apartments, built on the Site, provide the City of Coalinga with affordable housing, (source: EPA) FOR MORE INFORMAl ON, PLEASE CON I AC LilyTavassoli, Remedial Project Manager, at (415) 972-3146 or tavassoli.liiv@epa.aov: or Gary Riley, Region 9 Superfund Redevelopment Coordinator, at (415) 972-3003 or riiev.aarv@epa.aov. SEPA United States Environmental Protection Agency Superfund Redevelopment Initiative Updated: August 2010 2 ------- |