&EPA
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
EPA Region 5 Records Ctr.
262312
Public Comment Period
U.S. EPA will accept written comments on its recom-
mendation to change the cleanup decision for soil conta-
mination at the Fisher-Calo Superfund Site during a pub-
lic comment period:
Date: August 25 through September 23, 1997
Public Meeting
U.S. EPA will hold a public meeting to explain its recom-
mendation. Oral and written comments will be accepted
at the meeting.
Date: Tuesday, September 16,1997
Time: 7-9 p.m.
Place: Swanson Activity Center
910 State Street
La Porte
Fisher-Calo Site Map
Figure 1
Office of Public Affairs Illinois Indiana
Region 5 Michigan Minnesota
77 West Jackson Blvd. Ohio Wisconsin
Chicago, IL 60604
N
A
U.S. EPA Recommends Change
in Soil Cleanup Decision
Fisher-Calo Superfund Site
La Porte County, Indiana
August 1997
Introduction
The United States Environmental Protection Agency
(U.S. EPA), in cooperation with the Indiana
Department of Environmental Management (IDEM),
proposes changes to the cleanup remedy described in
the August 1990 Record of Decision (ROD) for the
Fisher-Calo Superfund Site (Figure 1) in La Porte
County, Indiana.1 These changes relate to the
soil portion of the site remedy; the ground-
water remedy remains primarily the same as
described in the 1990 ROD.
Space
Leasing
Hupp Road
Facility
Central Road
Indian*
The Fisher-Calo Superfund Site is located in the Kingsbury
Industrial Development Park near the town of Kingsbury, in La
Porte County, Indiana. Industrial land surrounds most of the site. Southwest of the
site are several residential areas, including King's Court Trailer Park and the vil-
lages of Tracy and Kingston! Heights.
This fact sheet presents U.S. EPA's recom-
mendation and the major components of the
1990 ROD. It also presents site background
information, a summary of site risks, and an
update on the progress to date in cleaning up
the Fisher-Calo site. More detailed informa-
tion is available at site information reposito-
ries at the La Porte Public Library and La
Porte County Health Department.
ments about recommended changes to the
Fisher-Calo site cleanup plan. Public com-
ments will be considered by the agencies ;
before changes are made to the 1990 ROD.
1 Section 300.515(e) of the National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP) requires publication of a notice, a public comment
period, and a fact sheet for public distribution that presents U.S. EPA's recommendation for an amendment to a site cleanup decision. This fact sheet
summarizes information available at the site information repositories and in the site Administrative Record.
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Background
The Fisher-Calo Superfund Site is
located in the Kingsbury Industrial
Development Park near the town of
Kingsbury, in La Porte County,
Indiana. The Kingsbury Industrial
Development Park was originally
known as the U.S. Military
Kingsbury Ordnance Plant. After
the plant closed in the 1960s, a pri-
vate party purchased the property
and subdivided part of it to form the
Kingsbury Industrial Development
Park.
In 1971, Fisher-Calo Chemical and
Solvents Corporation purchased this
land (about 250 acres) and operated
a facility on part of it and leased the
rest to other operators. The Fisher-
Calo Superfund Site includes this
250 acres and another separate loca-
tion in the Kingsbury Industrial
Park, known as Space Leasing.
Fisher-Calo Chemical and Solvents
Corporation processed and distrib-
uted solvents, metal finishing sup-
plies, and other industrial chemicals.
The Corporation accepted various
chemicals and wastes, stored them
in metals drums, and stockpiled the
drums at various places on their
property. Many businesses that
leased land from the Fisher-Calo
Corporation processed industrial
chemicals.
Environmental investigations deter-
mined that the Fisher-Calo site con-
tained four contaminated soil areas,
two other areas with about 3,500
buried drums, and four ground-
water plumes. Two of the contami-
nated soil areas contained volatile
organic compounds (VOCs) and
semivolatile organic compounds
(SVOCs), the third soil area con-
tained only VOCs, and the fourth
area was contaminated with SVOCs
and polychlorinated biphenyls
(PCBs). The buried drum area on
the Fisher-Calo property was conta-
minated with VOCs and SVOCs,
while the buried drum area at Space
Leasing was contaminated with
VOCs. Three of the ground-water
plumes were found beneath Fisher-
Calo Corporation property; the
fourth plume is under Space
Leasing.
Summary of Site Risks
The primary potential public health
risk at the Fisher-Calo site is expo-
sure to contaminated ground water
through a drinking water supply.
Nearby residents are not now at risk
from the four ground-water plumes
because a comprehensive ground-
water monitoring system is in place
to assure the safety of public drink-
ing water. However, a potential
future risk exists because residents
from Kingsbury and other areas
southwest of the site receive their
drinking water from production
wells located on or near the
Kingsbury Industrial Park.
Other potential public health risks
involve exposure through touching,
breathing in, or ingesting contami-
nants in the four contaminated soil
areas and two buried drum areas.
These potential health risks, howev-
er, are minimal because these areas
are remote, fenced, industrial loca-
tions, and all buried drums and
PCB-contaminated soil have been
excavated and disposed of off site.
Original 1990 Remedy
In 1990, U.S. EPA signed a docu-
ment called a record of decision,
authorizing a cleanup remedy for the
Fisher-Calo site. This remedy
included the following major com-
ponents:
•Soil excavation and incineration of
PCB and SVOC contaminated soils.
2
•Soil flushing or soil vapor extrac-
tion of VOC contaminated soils.
•Ground-water extraction, treatment,
and reinjection of contaminated
ground water created from site haz-
ardous chemicals.
•Replacement of a previously shut
down production well in Kingsbury
Industrial Park.
•Investigation of two buried drum
areas on site, followed by excava-
tion and disposal of drums.
•Comprehensive program of moni-
toring of contaminated soil, ground
water, and other site materials to
ensure public health and safety.
•Site fencing and security of conta-
minated soil areas.
Cleanup Progress to Date
The following components of the
1990 cleanup decision have been
implemented:
•A soil vapor extraction (SVE) sys-
tem at a VOC contaminated soil
area.
•Excavation and off-site disposal of
PCB-contaminated soils.
•Investigation of buried drums, fol-
lowed by drum excavation and off-
site disposal.
•Off-site disposal of surface drums
and containers.
•Comprehensive site monitoring
program to assure public health and
safety.
•Site fencing of contaminated soil
areas.
The Next Step
U.S. EPA and IDEM will consider
public comments received during
the public comment period before
making changes to the Fisher-Calo
site cleanup remedy. After the deci-
sion is made, the remedy will be
designed and implemented under the
oversight of the U.S. EPA and
IDEM.
Public Comment Sheet
Your input on the recommended changes to the cleanup remedy for the Fisher-Calo Superfund Site is important
to U.S. EPA and IDEM. Comments provided by the public help U.S. EPA and IDEM make decisions about the
site.
You may use the space below to write your comments, then fold and mail. Comments must be postmarked on
or before September 23, 1997. If you have questions about the public comment period, please contact Derrick
Kimbrough at 312-886-9749 or at U.S. EPA's toll-free number: 1-800-621-8431. You may also submit com-
ments to U.S. EPA via the Internet at the following address: kimbrough.derrick@epamail.epa.gov
(
C
Name:
City:_
State:
Zip:
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Fisher-Calo Superfund Site
Public Comment Sheet
Fold on Dashed Lines, Staple, Steimp, and Meiil
Name
Address_
City
Zip
State
Derrick Kimbrough (P-19J)
Community Involvement Coordinator
Office of Public Affairs
U.S. EPA, Region 5
77 West Jackson Boulevard
Chicago, IL 60604
Comparison of Proposed Changes to 1990 ROD
1990 ROD
Excavation and incineration of PCBs and SVOC contami-
nated soils.
Soil flushing or soil vapor extraction to treat VOC contami-
nated soils.
Extraction, treatment, and reinjection of treated ground
water.
Proposed Changes
Bioremediation of SVOCs and off-site disposal of PCB con-
taminated soils.
Soil vapor extraction to treat VOC contaminated soils.
Extraction, treatment, and discharge of treated ground water
to Travis Ditch.
fvaiuatkmCriterin
C.S. EPA Bftd IDEM uudtbe following aise
criteria tftevataateebaages to the J990cfcaa*lp
for the Pmet-Ctlo
t, Overall Protection af Human Health and
fee EnvtoBamnridetmaisw whefhera remedy
controls, engineering crtntrrils, or fitsttment
% Compliance with Applicable or Relevant
mi Appropriate Retpdresaente {A RAHs)
evaluates whether a remedy meets federal and
state environmental statutes, tegsdatkms, and:
other requiratneats that pertain to fee site or
whether & waiver is justified.
3. Long-Term Effectiveness and Permanence
considers the ability of a remedy to maintain
Sv Short^rerm EflteGtiyeftcss considers Hie a
length is issued
Evaluation Table
Evaluation Criteria
1990
ROD
Proposed
Remedy
1. Overall Protection of
Health & Environment
¦
¦
2. Compliance with ARARs
¦
¦
3. Long-term Effectiveness
and. Permanence
¦
¦
4. Reduction of Toxicity, Mobility,
or Volume through Treatment
~
~
5. Short-Term Effectiveness
~
~
6. Implementability
¦
¦
7. Coat
$31.7
Million
$30
Million
8. Support Agency Acceptance
~
¦
9. Community Acceptance
~
Based on
evaluation
of public
comments
- Fully meets criteria Partially meets criteria
| | - Does not meet criteria NA - Not Applicable
U.S. EPA Recommendation
U.S. EPA, in cooperation with IDEM,
recommends fundamental changes to the
soil cleanup remedy for the Fisher-Calo
site. These changes mostly pertain to soil
areas contaminated with SVOCs and
PCBs. The most fundamental change
proposed is to use bioremediation to treat
SVOC contaminated soils because the
PCB soils have been excavated and dis-
posed of off site. Bioremediation consists
of using air injection wells beneath the
SVOC contaminated areas and combining
this process with soil vapor extraction.
Bioremediation, in combination with soil
vapor extraction, has been shown to be an
effective remedy for SVOC contaminated
soils such as those at the Fisher-Calo site.
U.S. EPA also recommends several other
changes in the 1990 remedy:
• Disposal of PCB contaminated soils off
site instead of treating them on site.
Disposal of PCB soils was done off site
because of the low volume involved.
• Soil vapor extraction instead of soil
flushing to treat VOC contaminated soils.
• Discharge of treated ground water to
Travis Ditch rather than reinjection back
into the ground water.
U.S. EPA's recommended changes to the
1990 cleanup remedy for the Fisher-Calo
site will provide a remedy that is more
easily implemented, more cost effective,
and as effective and protective of human
health and the environment as the original
remedy. In addition, when possible and
practical, as is the case at the Fisher-Calo
site, bioremediation is preferred over
incineration as a soil cleanup remedy.
V.
I
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Additional Information
U.S. EPA and IDEM invite anyone interested in learning more about the Fisher-Calo site to visit the information
repositories maintained at the following locations:
An Administrative Record file, which contains the information that is the basis for site cleanup decisions, has
been established at the La Porte Public Library and the U.S. EPA Region 5 office in Chicago.
For further information on the Fisher-Calo site, please contact:
Jeff Gore Derrick Kimbrough Chris Brown
Remedial Project Manager Community Involvement Office of Environmental Response
Office of Superfund (SR-6J) Coordinator Superfund Section
U.S. EPA Region 5 Office of Public Affairs (P-l 9J) Indiana Department of
77 West Jackson Boulevard U.S. EPA Region 5 Environmental Management
Chicago, Illinois 60604 77 West Jackson Boulevard 100 North Senate Avenue
(312) 886-6552 or Chicago, Illinois 60604 P.O. Box 6015
Toll Free: 1-800-621-8431 (312) 886-9749 or Indianapolis, Indiana 46206-6015
gore.jeffrey @epamail.epa.gov Toll Free: 1-800-621-8431 (317) 308-3116
kimbrough.derrick@epamail.epa.gov cbrow@opn.dem.state.in.us
La Porte Public Library
904 Indiana Avenue
La Porte
La Porte County Health Department
Administrator's Office
County Complex
Courthouse Square
La Porte
V,
J
Office of Public Affairs (P-19J)
U.S. EPA Region 5
77 West Jackson Boulevard
Chicago, Illinois 60604
w
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