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CALHOUN COUNTY
BATTLE CREEK
Congressional District # 07
VERONA WELL FIELD
EPA ID# MID980793806Last Updated: August, 2006
Site Description
The Verona Well field is located in Battle Creek, Michigan. The well field is adjacent to the Battle Creek River, a railroad yard, a small residential area, and is also near industrial facilities. The site contamination impacted three aquifers over an area of approximately 160 acres. In 1981 and 1982, twenty-seven of the thirty Verona Well Field wells as well as 80 private residential wells were found to be contaminated by a number of volatile organic compounds, including benzene, dichloroethanes, dichloroethylenes, methylene chloride, trichloroethylene, tetrachloroethylene, and vinyl chloride. The contamination threatens the drinking water supply for over 53,000 residents.The United Stated Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) determined that the sources of contamination were three 1-acre facilities. Two were used for storage, blending and containerization of solvents by the Thomas Solvent Company; one facility was a paint shop operated by the Grand Trunk Western Railroad. Soil and groundwater contamination had resulted from leakage from containers and underground storage tanks, spillage, and direct dumping.
Site Responsibility
U.S. EPA conducted the following actions: groundwater sampling to identify the contaminant source areas and locate the extent of the groundwater contamination; emergency actions to protect residents whose private wells were contaminated; evaluation and implementation of actions, including converting a line of city production wells to operate as a blocking well system and installation of replacement production wells, to provide immediate protection to the city water supply; with state support operation of a blocking well system from 1984 - June 1996; evaluate methods to improve the blocking well system, and cleanup soil and groundwater; soil treatment by soil vapor extraction, and groundwater pump-and treat at one of the Thomas Solvent facilities. The state took over responsibility for operation and maintenance of this source area pump-and-treat system on May 31, 2003.
Private parties that may be responsible for the contamination conducted the following actions: soil treatment by soil vapor extraction in two source areas; constructing additions to the blocking well system and pump-and treat systems for one Thomas Solvent facility and the Grand Truck Paint Shop between September - December 1996; expanding the blocking system and improving the source area pump-and-treat systems between May 2003 and June 2004; and operation and maintenance of blocking well and two pump-and-treat systems from December 1996 to the present. In April 2005, private parties entered an agreement with U.S. EPA to complete the soil treatment, and operate the groundwater treatment system until cleanup standards are achieved. The private parties have also reimbursed a portion of the Federal costs.
Threats and Contaminants
Prior to implementing the blocking well system, the Verona Well Field was contaminated by a number of volatile organic compounds, including benzene, trichloroethylene, and tetrachoroethylene. This resulted in potential exposure and health threats to users of the city of Battle Creek water supply and to residents with affected residential wells. Exposure to contaminated groundwater was eliminated by connecting residents to the city water supply and by construction of a blocking well system to capture and remove contaminated groundwater before affecting operational city water supply wells.
Prior to implementing cleanup actions, contaminated soils and groundwater from source areas continued to release contamination that threatened the city well field. The source area pump-and-treat systems are designed to prevent further off-site movement of contaminated groundwater from the source areas. Volatile organic compound concentrations have been substantially reduced in source area soils, source area ground water, and ground water at the blocking wells as a result of the soil vapor extraction and pump-and-treat.
Cleanup Progress
In 1983, U.S. EPA provided bottled water and portable showers to the residents with contaminated private wells. In 1984, U.S. EPA converted 12 of the water supply wells into a hydraulic barrier wells system to prevent migration of contaminants to the rest of the city water supply wells. Water from the barrier well system was treated by air stripping and discharged. In addition, U.S. EPA installed three replacement water supply wells. With support from the state agency, U.S. EPA operated this blocking well system until operation was taken over by private parties in June 1996.In 1987, to address a Thomas Solvent facility, U.S. EPA constructed a soil vapor extraction system to clean up soils, and a groundwater pump-and-treat system to clean up the groundwater. U.S. EPA operated the soil vapor extraction system from 1988 until 1993 and removed an estimated 50,000 pounds of VOCs from the soil, but the soil cleanup requirements were not achieved. The groundwater pump-and-treat system, which is still operating, has removed an estimated 21,000 pounds of volatile organic compounds and reduced the maximum volatile organic compound concentration from 85,960 to less than 200 micrograms/liter. Free product from spillage on an adjacent facility is complicating and increasing costs for the groundwater cleanup.
In 1993, private parties constructed soil vapor extraction systems at the other two source areas. These systems operated from June 1993 to June 1994 and to date have removed an 7,000 pounds of volatile organic compounds. From September -- December 1996, a group of private parties constructed a second line of blocking wells and upgraded the old blocking wells and treatment system to provide more protection to the city water supply and to clean up the aquifer faster. During this time the private parties also constructed pump-and treat systems to contain and cleanup groundwater at the two source areas. Because they were unable to demonstrate that the source area pump-and-treat systems were containing the contaminated groundwater, these systems were expanded. The expanded Thomas Solvent pump-and-treat system started operating in September 2003, and the expanded Grand Truck Paint Shop system started operating started operating in June 2004. Between June 1996 and December 2006, the blocking well and Annex and Paint Shop extraction systems have removed an estimated 2,100 pounds of VOCs from the groundwater.
In response to state and city of Battle Creek concerns, the private parties have taken the following actions: 1. expanded the blocking well system, and in June 2004 started operating this system at increased the pumping rates in order to reduce the potential for contamination reaching the city water supply. 2. starting in November 2004 at the Thomas Solvent facility and in June 2005 at the Grand Trunk Paint Shop, operated air sparge systems to reduce volatile organic compound concentrations in groundwater in those source areas. Groundwater in the vicinity of the blocking wells now exceeds cleanup requirements only by a limited amount in certain areas. Operation of the air sparging systems in the source areas has resulted in decreases in volatile organic compound concentrations in groundwater. The most highly contaminated groundwater in the source areas is now approaching cleanup requirements.
Success Story
There are two sucess stories for this site. One is an old story - that in 1983 and 1984, U.S. EPA took quick action to protect public health by providing an alternative water supply for residents with a contaminated private well, and by protecting the city of Battle Creek's water supply by converting 12 of the southern water supply wells into a blocking well system. By operating the blocking well system and installing replacement water supply wells, volatile organic compounds were reduced to low levels in water supply wells north of the blocking wells within a few months. Operating the blocking well system provided continuing protection to the city water supply at a relatively low cost while the time consuming process of sampling groundwater to determine the extent of contamination, of evaluating cleanup methods for soil and groundwater, of negotiating with private parties, and of design and construction of source area cleanups and an improved blocking well system was completed.
The second success story is the results of the collaborative effort among the private parties, U.S. EPA, the state, and the city of Battle Creek. Periodic meetings among these parties started in the fall of 1997, and are continuing at least annually. The private parties should be credited with being willing to meet and work with the government agencies to satisfy their concerns instead of taking an adversarial approach, which may have led to litigation. These efforts resulted in an informal agreement in principal among the parties in September 2000. In the agreement with the state and city, the private parties agreed to increase blocking well pumping rates enough to protect the city water supply in case of increased water demand in the future, and to assure that there is no detection of volatile organic compounds in the city water supply that could be from the Thomas Solvent or Grand Trunk Paint Shop source areas. Construction for the increased pumping was completed in 2003 - 2004. In addition, in the state agreement, the private parties agreed to conduct air sparging at two source areas in an attempt to accelerate removal of volatile organic compounds from the groundwater. The air sparge system started operating in November 2004 at the Thomas Solvent facility, and in June 2005 at the Paint Shop. Because the air sparging appears to be successful, the private parties are continuing operation of the air sparge systems beyond state requirements. U.S. EPA and the state are evaluating whether air sparging should be performed at the other Thomas Solvent source area.
Community Involvement
U.S. EPA and the private parties have been working closely with the state agency and the city of Battle Creek, to improve the effectiveness and monitoring for the blocking well system, and source area cleanups. In June 2002 U.S. EPA posted a notice for the first five-year review in a local newspaper. During the fall of 2003, EPA posted notice and invited public comments on changes in the cleanup methods in local newspapers. No public comments were received in response to these notices. In December 2006, U.S. EPA posted a notice for the second five-year review in a local newspaper.Congressional Interest
In May 2002, U.S. EPA recieved correspondence from Senator Carl Levin. This letter supported the city of Battle Creek's desire to assure: that the blocking well system protects the city water supply in the future; that the system is properly monitored, and that the pace of the source areas cleanup is increased.Property Reuse
The Grand Trunk Paint Shop area is presently being used for maintenace of railroad equipment. The source areas should be safe for unlimited reuse if the soil and groundwater cleanup requirements are achieved. Usage of the properties and contaminated groundwater is restricted by City, Township, and County ordinances, and zoning restrictions (all of the properties are zoned for industrial usage). Nearby property owners are being notified that U.S. EPA would have concerns if the properties are used for residential purposes.
Usage of the source areas being cleaned up by private parties is restricted by a deed notice. The contents of the deed notice needs to be revisited after completion of soil treatment and soil sampling. The source area being cleanup up by U.S. EPA and state actions is under state ownership.
Contacts
Remedial Project Manager, U.S. EPArichard boice (boice.richard@epa.gov)
(312) 886-4740
Community Involvement Coordinator, U.S. EPA
Don De Blasio
(312) 886-9749
Aliases
THOMAS SOLVENT - CELLO FOILBATTLE CREEK VERONA WELL FIELD