NPL Factsheets for Wisconsin

SPICKLER LANDFILL

EPA ID# WID980902969

Last Update: February 2002

Site Description

EPA REGION 5

Marathon County
Spencer

7th Congressional District

The Spickler Landfill site, is a former municipal and industrial
dump site comprised of two fill areas totaling ten acres on an
80-acre parcel of land located in the sparsely populated,
rural area of Spencer, Wisconsin. The site was operated as a
municipal open dump. In December 1970, BASF Wyandotte
received approval from the Wisconsin Department of Natural
Resources (WDNR) to construct an approximately 10,000
square foot clay-lined sludge disposal area at the landfill for
mercury brine muds. Other industrial wastes known to have
been disposed in the Spickler Landfill include; kalo dust
which contained asbestos, disposed of by Weyerhauser
Company, and toluene, xylenes, methyl-ethyl ketone, and
methylene chloride, disposed of by Weinbrenner Shoe
Company. Private property owners live next to the landfill,
including two homes directly west of the landfill and
additional homes to the south and southwest of the landfill.
The population of Spencer in 1991 was approximately 1,095.
All residents are using private well water.


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Site Responsibility: This site is being addressed through

Federal, State, and potentially
responsible parties' actions.

NPL Listing History: Proposed Date: 01/22/87

Final Date: 07/22/87

Threats and Contaminants

Some landfill gas was detected on site and asbestos was
confirmed to be present in a landfill cover soil sample.
Leachate samples from the mercury brine pit contained
elevated levels of calcium (3,340,000 ppb), magnesium
(2,180,000 ppb), mercury (666 ppb) and nine organic
compounds. Groundwater samples from monitoring wells
showed exceedances of Maximum Contaminant Levels
(MCLs) for the following chemicals: benzene (8 ppb), vinyl
chloride (39 ppb), barium (4,690 ppb), copper (2,250 ppb),
iron (4,280 ppb) and manganese (54 ppb). Groundwater
contamination has not moved off the property. Mercury was
not detected in the groundwater samples collected for round
one in July 1990; it was detected in monitoring well 15S at
0.2 ppb and monitoring well S1A at 0.31 ppb during round
two sampling in January 1991. Eight private wells near the
site were sampled. One well exceeded the Wisconsin
Drinking Water Standard for manganese, one well exceeded
for lead, one well exceeded for iron, and one well exceeded
for copper.

Cleanup Progress

On June 3, 1992, BASF, Weyerhauser, and Weinbrenner
Shoe Company, the potentially responsible parties (PRPs)
involved, completed the investigation and study under an
Administrative Order on Consent (AOC). A Record of
Decision (ROD) was signed on June 30, 1992, that required
upgrade of the existing landfill cap and installation of
leachate collection and landfill gas flare systems. The PRPs
completed the design on December 20, 1993, under another
AOC and completed Remedial Action (RA) construction
under a Unilateral Administrative Order (UAO) on September


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29, 1995. Long-term (30 year) monitoring continues and a
Five-Year Review was signed on September 28, 2000. A
final ROD was signed on September 29, 1998 to establish
requirements for site close-out. The Five-Year Review
recommended modification of long-term monitoring to collect
additional data and make sure contamination does not
migrate off-site.

Contacts

Remedial Project Manager
Fred Bartman
(312) 886-0776
bartman.fred@epa.gov

Community Involvement Coordinator
Denise Battaglia
(312)886-9859
battaglia.denise@epa.gov


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