WASHINGTON STATE DEPARTMENT DF ECOLOGY Bainbridge Island, Washington October 2012 Moving forward with cleanup at the Wyckoff/Eagle Harbor Superfund Site is important for Bainbridge Island and our region. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology) want to share information on the progress made so far and the work that will take place in the next two years. Site Background The Wyckoff/Eagle Harbor Superfund Site is located on the east side of Bainbridge Island, Washington, in central Puget Sound. It encompasses the former Wyckoff wood-treating facility (operated from 1903-1988), a former shipyard, and roughly 500 acres of contaminated sediments located next to these former facilities in Eagle Harbor. The site is divided into four program work areas called "operable units." The four operable units are: West Harbor, East Harbor, Soil, and Groundwater. In the past, creosote, oil, and other wood- treatment chemicals were used at the site. These chemicals have left high levels of polyaromatic hydrocarbons, pentachlorophenol, and dioxins in soil, groundwater, and in seeps on beaches next to the site. These contaminants are at the site in three forms: dissolved contaminants, liquid lighter than water (light non-aqueous phase liquid), and liquid heavier than water (dense non-aqueous phase liquid). The most severe contamination is found in the upper aquifer groundwater underneath the site's former process area. There is also a lower aquifer at the site, separated from the upper aquifer by a clay layer, called an aquitard. The lower aquifer has lower concentrations of contaminants than the upper aquifer. The aquitard reduces movement of groundwater. The Eagle Harbor sediments were also polluted with organic compounds from the wood treating operations along with heavy metals such as mercury, lead, copper, and zinc from shipyards. Current Groundwater Conditions at the Site and Sheet Pile Wall ¦- ------- Work Moves Forward at the Wyckoff/Eagle Harbor Superfund Site Completed Remedial Activities D EPA has completed a great deal of work at the Wyckoff/ Eagle Harbor Superfund Site since 2000. Major activities that have been completed include: Installing more than 2,300 lineal feet of sheet pile wall around the most heavily contaminated area of the site. Capping 15 acres of contaminated harbor sediments with clean materials. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Creating more than 1,200 lineal feet of habitat beach. Constructing a new groundwater treatment plant. Upgrading the existing groundwater extraction well system and groundwater level monitoring system. Demolishing the old groundwater treatment plant. Continued monitoring of groundwater for hydraulic containment and water quality. So far, more than $150 million has been spent on cleanup activities. Currently, contaminated soil, groundwater, and liquids lighter than water ( non-aqueous phase liquids) are contained within the site by the sheet pile wall. The groundwater extraction system and groundwater treatment plant prevent contaminated groundwater from leaving the site and entering into the harbor and lower aquifer. EPA believes the risks to human health and the environment from the site are under control, and that the site is stable and will remain so during ongoing operations and maintenance of the containment system and the groundwater treatment plant. Ecology's Concerns with the Containment Remedy Under the Superfund law, the State is required to take over and pay for operation and maintenance of a cleanup that is funded by EPA. Ecology's primary concerns with the EPA containment remedy are: • The long-term environmental consequence of leaving large amounts of mobile contamination beneath the former process area, given its important and sensitive location on the shores of Puget Sound. • The financial and logistical burden placed on the State and the Bainbridge Island community. The life-cycle costs to operate and maintain the containment remedy in perpetuity are estimated to require hundreds of millions of dollars. Due to these concerns, in September 2009, Ecology began a nine-month generational remedy evaluation. The evaluation looked at other solutions that would reduce the remaining volume and mobility of the site contaminants. Members of the Bainbridge Island community were involved in the evaluation, including a workshop of nationally known technical experts who posed potential cleanup ideas. The evaluation was completed in August 2010, and results presented in the Wyckoff Generational Remedy Evaluation Report. Moving Forward EPA and Ecology agreed on an approach to address some 1. of the challenging issues posed by the site, and entered into a two-year comprehensive Superfund State Contract (SSC) to guide these efforts. This contract covers the period from April 1,2012 through 2. March 31,2014. It defines specific activities for Ecology and EPA as follows: Ecology will operate and maintain the Wyck- off Groundwater Extraction and Treatment System to contain groundwater contamination within the upland part of the site. EPA will evaluate cleanup alternatives specific to removing sources of contaminants at the site's former process area. This will be done in a document called a Focused Feasibility Study. Continued on next page O 2 ------- r Moving Forward \ ^ 0 Continued J Operations and Maintenance of the Wyckoff Groundwater Extraction and Treatment System In March 2012 Ecology (through a competitive bid process) selected and entered into a contract with CH2M Hill to operate and maintain the Wyckoff Groundwater Extraction and Treatment System through March 31,2014. Focused Feasibility Study Activities EPA has just completed the work plan for the study EPA proposes to: 1. Further assess the lateral and vertical extent of mobile contaminants. 2. Evaluate the effectiveness of thermal/heat reme- diation on remaining contaminants. 3. Better understand the groundwater aquifer. 4. Assess how well the sheet pile wall holds back the contaminated groundwater. 5. Develop potential alternatives for removing the contaminant sources, including thermal remedia- tion. 6. Determine what other supporting structures might be needed, such as an expanded treatment plant and power requirements. 7. Compare the alternatives using the National Con- tingency Plan's nine evaluation criteria. These results will be presented in a Focused Feasibility Study report. Next, EPA will prepare a document called a Proposed Plan that explains the preferred cleanup alternative. The Proposed Plan will be available for public comment. A second Focused Feasibility Study report will summarize the findings related to the creosote seeps along the eastern beach area. The findings of both of these reports may be combined into one Proposed Plan available for public comment. Path Forward For the selected remedy, EPA and Ecology will negotiate a framework for funding and carrying out the site's cleanup actions and long-term care responsibilities as defined in the Proposed Plan and the subsequent Record of Decision Amendment. The framework will be formalized in a Superfund State Contract that defines obligations for the site into the future. Making Progress on Other Key Site Studies 1. In summer 2012, EPA sampled the subsurface beach sediment at the North Shoal and East Beach at the site. EPA used a coring drill to take samples. The completed beach sampling report is expected to be available later this year. 2. EPA has completed the Year Seventeen Monitor- ing Report for the East Harbor Operable Unit. Results show the intertidal and subtidal sediment caps, except for a "scour zone" around the ferry lanes, are effectively isolating contaminants. The scour zone is the area where the ferry speeds up and slows down in Eagle Harbor, and erodes the sediment caps. 3. EPA has finished the third Five-Year Review Report for the site. 4. EPA and Ecology plan to hold a community meeting later this year to present the progress and future work at this site. If you need materials in an alternative format, please contact Debra Sherbina at 1-800-424-4372 ext. 0247 [ft TDD users: please call the Federal Relay Service at 800-877-8339 and give the operator Debra Sherbina's phone number. For More Information Howard Orlean, EPA Region 10 Project Manager 206-553-2851 orlean.howard@epa.gov Chung Ki Yee Ecology Project Manager 360-407-6991 cyee461 @ecy.wa.gov On the web: yosemite.epa.gov/r10/cleanup.nsf/sites/wyckoff If you would like to be added to the Wyckoff-Eagle Harbor Superfund Site mailing list to receive updates on site activities, contact Debra Sherbina at sherbina.debra@epa.gov or 800-424-4372, ext. 0247. If you received this fact sheet directly, you are already on the mailing list. 3 ------- Work Moves Forward at the Wyckoff/Eagle Harbor Superfund Site &EPA United States Environmental Protection Agency ECOLOGY Region 10 1200 Sixth Avenue, Suite 900, ETPA-081 Seattle,Washington 98101-3140 October 2012r Pre-Sorted Standard Postage and Fees Paid U.S. EPA Permit No.G-35 Seattle, WA Work Moves Forward at Wyckoff/Eagle Harbor Superfund Site Rend Inside for details 4 ------- |