,^eos% BASIN MINING AREA / JSP* ^ Near Basin, Montana, Jefferson County $ Congressional District- At Large PKS(^ EPA ID# MTD982572562 March 2005 ABOUT THE BASIN MINING AREA SITE ... EPA listed the Basin Mining Area to the Superfund National Priorities List on October 22, 1999, due to mining-waste problems in the watershed and mining waste in the Town of Basin. The mining area includes the watersheds of Basin and Cataract Creek and portions of the Boulder River below the confluence with these heavily impacted streams. BACKGROUND INFORMATION Mine wastes impact Basin and Cataract Creeks and the soils within the town of Basin. Contaminants include arsenic, cadmium, copper, lead and other metals. Listing allows EPA to look at the watersheds in a comprehensive way in cooperation with other agencies and community groups. The Site is divided into two Operable Units (OUs): the Town of Basin and the Basin Watershed. Continued releases of arsenic, cadmium, lead, zinc, sliver, and copper to residential soil and surface water pose a risk to human health and aquatic resources. RECENT HIGHLIGHTS AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS TOWN OF BASIN OU 1998 - EPA conducted a removal in the Town of Basin OU near residential properties. This action removed some of the mining waste sources located in the community of Basin. 2000 - EPA completed a Remedial Investigation and Feasibility Study as well as a human health risk assessment. 2001 - EPA released a Proposed Cleanup Plan for public comment in January 2001 and issued the Record of Decision for the Site in March of 2001 (estimated cost of $3.9 million). The ROD specifies removal of contaminated mine waste and soil from 26 residential properties, the Basin School yard, and 15 mine waste source areas. 2002 - EPA began the residential component of the remedy in September 2002. Phase 1 was completed in November 2002. During this time, 28 residential properties and source areas, including the Basin School and Basin Street Tailings, were cleaned up. A total of 4700 cubic yards of material was excavated. 2003 - EPA cleaned up the additional residential properties identified in 2002 and the nine source areas. The source areas included the Jib Tailings, stream side tailings, and the Basin Street Tailings. Approximately 50,000 cubic yards of contaminated -1- ------- mine wastes were removed in 2003 despite the short construction season of May-October. Wastes excavated in 2002 and 2003 were trucked to Luttrell Repository for disposal. 2004 - EPA completed removal of the remaining source areas and completed the reclamation activities for sites cleaned up in 2003. The work included mine wastes around the Basin wastewater treatment lagoons. EPA disposed an additional 34,000 cubic yards of material to the Luttrell Repository. Cleanup of the Town of Basin Operable Unit is now complete. The work was accomplished in cooperation with the community, US Forest Service, US Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Land management, Jefferson County, and the State of Montana. BASIN WATERSHED OU: 2001/2002 - In partnership with the US Forest Service, EPA conducted cleanup of the mining wastes at the Buckeye/Enterprise, Crystal and Bullion Mines located in the Basin Creek and Cataract Watersheds. Approximately, 40,000 cubic yards of waste were disposed of in the Luttrell Repository. EPA began the Site Remedial Investigation and Feasibility Study. 2003 - EPA completed the Remedial Investigation and Feasibility Study for the Basin Watershed OU which includes Cataract Creek, Basin Creek, and a portion of the Boulder River below the confluence of these two streams. 2004/2005 - At the request of the State of Montana, EPA is transferring the lead responsibility for the Basin Mining Area National Priorities List (NPL) Site, (Watershed Operable Unit 2) to the Montana Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ). The MDEQ will complete an addendum to the RI/FS, that responds to public comment and develop a proposed plan and record of decision. It is expected that the record of decision will be complete by March, 2006. In spite of the greater number of mine sites in this project area EPA has gained efficiency from prior work that has been done on the Upper Ten Mile Creek Mining Area site. EPA will continue to involve affected communities and the appropriate agencies in their decision-making process. FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: U.S. EPA Region 8, Montana Office Federal Building 10 West 15 th Street, Suite 3200 Helena, MT 59626 Jim Harris, Project Manager Town of Basin OU1 (406) 457-5032 Email: harris.iim@epa.gov Mike Bishop, Project Manager Basin Watershed OU 2 (406) 457 - 5041 Email: bishop.mike@epa.gov Diana Hammer, Community Involvement (406) 457-5040 Email: hammer, diana @ epa. gov Montana Department of Environmental Quality P.O. Box 200902 Helena, MT 59620 Joe Griffin, Project Officer (406) 841-5042 E-mail: igriffin@mt.gov VIEW DOCUMENTS AT: U.S. EPA Region 8, Montana Office Federal Building 10 West 15th Street, Suite 3200 Helena, MT 59626 (406) 457-5000 Toll Free#: 1-866-457-2690 On the Web: www.epa.gov/region08/superftmd/sites/mt/mtbasinnpl.html -2- ------- -3- ------- |