HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-19-22 City Commission Meeting - EPA summary supplemental materialsFrom:David Fine
To:Mike Maas
Subject:FW: Meeting summary
Date:Monday, April 18, 2022 3:55:35 PM
From: Archer, Beth (she/her) <archer.elizabeth@epa.gov>
Sent: Monday, April 18, 2022 3:12 PM
To: David Fine <DFine@BOZEMAN.NET>
Subject: Meeting summary
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Hi David,
Here’s a little more information for the Mayor and City Commissioners if you have a chance to pass
it along before tomorrow’s meeting. I can also toss it into a word doc if that makes it easier.
Status update
Additional remedial work is planned at the Idaho Pole Company Superfund site this year. The Idaho
Pole Company property is currently up for sale, which EPA, the Montana Department of
Environmental Quality (DEQ), the city and the prospective purchaser have been in discussion about
to ensure the area remains protective to human health and the environment. In August 2021, EPA
issued a comfort letter to provide a prospective purchaser of property at the site with the
information EPA has about the current status of the property, concerns raised by the community,
EPA’s intentions with respect to the property as of the date of the letter, and potential liability
protections.
Upcoming Work
GroundwaterWhile this site has been treating groundwater for many years (between 1997-2016),groundwater contamination typically takes many years to address. Based on the levelsof contamination identified in the 2020 Five-Year Review evaluating the effectivenessof remedies at the site and long-term safety, the agencies identified a potential path toreduce current groundwater contamination at the site.
EPA and DEQ evaluated various approaches to reduce groundwater contamination,including data from the 2021 in-situ Focused Feasibility Study, and determined that in-situ treatment may best address the existing contamination. In-situ treatment refers tothe process of applying some sort of additive (either biological, physical or chemical) tothe water and allowing that additive to treat the water in-situ (or in place).
To address current groundwater contamination and facilitate redevelopment of theproperty, EPA and DEQ are working with IPC, the current owner and potentiallyresponsible party, to inject chemical oxidants into the subsurface this summer to breakdown contamination.
Just north of I90 along Bohart Lane and downgradient, permeable barriers of in situamendments will be used to treat passing contaminants that have already left the source
area, and thus, begin to clean up the downgradient portions of the plume.
Soil
The soils section of the site was partially deleted in 2020, with the exception of theTreated Soils Area (TSA) which still contains contaminated soil. In 2021, FloodInsurance Rate Maps for Bozeman were updated. The floodway boundaries may nowinclude a portion of the TSA north of Cedar Street which led the agencies to identifyadditional action that can be taken to reduce risk and ensure long term protectiveness.Surface soil samples were collected in 2021 by the prospective purchaser for dioxin,PCP and PAHs to support property development south of I90. Analytical results werebelow cleanup levels established in the Record of Decision. Additional subsurface soilsampling is ongoing.To prevent the TSA from coming into contact with floodwater, the prospectivepurchaser has agreed to remove treated soils north of Cedar Street (barkfill area) andconsolidate with other treated soils south of Cedar Street.An impervious cover will be placed on top of the TSA as part of the redevelopmentplans. An enhanced cap of impervious materials will restrict surface water infiltrationinto the treated soils and reduce the potential for residual contaminants to leach togroundwater. A stormwater system will also be constructed to collect runoff from the imperviousConsolidated TSA cap into a series of inlets, directing any stormwater away from theConsolidated TSA.
RedevelopmentEPA and DEQ are negotiating a Prospective Purchaser Agreement with the prospectivepurchaser who plans to purchase the property south of I90.
Any future development of the IPC Site needs to be done in a way that is protective ofhuman health and the environment.
Based on the nature of the legal negotiations, the agency has limitations on whatinformation can be shared at this point, and is committed to sharing information as soonas possible throughout the process. There will be a 30 day public comment period on aProspective Purchaser Agreement before the land is sold.
Thanks!
Beth Archer
Community Involvement Coordinator
720-512-1917 | archer.elizabeth@epa.gov
U.S. EPA Region 8 Public Affairs