Region 5 Superfund (SF)

U.S. EPA REGION 5
IOSCO COUNTY
OSCODA

Congressional District # 01

HEDBLUM INDUSTRIES

EPA ID# MID980794408
Last Updated: December, 2007

Site Description

The Hedblum Industries site is situated on 10 acres within a mixed-use, industrial and residential area in Au Sable Township, Iosco County, Michigan. From 1958 through 1985, the site was leased to a series of industrial firms that manufactured automobile parts. The Hedblum Industries site first came to the attention of the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) Water Quality Division, during a routine inspection of the facility in 1972. At that time, Thompson Industries was on site property and engaged in the assembly of anti-rattling devices for the automotive industry. Cooling and rinse waters were discharged from the plant directly onto the ground. During another inspection, MDEQ was informed that every two weeks from 1968 to 1972, Thompson had dumped approximately 40 gallons of trichloroethylene (TCE) from a degreasing tank onto the ground. The state estimates that 4,000 gallons of TCE were dumped over this four-year period. Samples from several residential wells indicated that two of them were contaminated with TCE. As a result, the state recommended that local residents not use their wells. The affected residents replaced their contaminated wells with deeper ones in an attempt to tap an uncontaminated water supply. Two more wells found to be contaminated in the Au Sable Heights area in 1975 were also replaced with deeper wells.

In 1977, the local health department received a complaint about a strong odor from one of the replacement wells. Sampling indicated that the well had also become contaminated with TCE. By 1978, the city of Oscoda had extended water mains into the Au Sable Heights subdivision and began providing an alternate water supply to the subdivision. Some property owners in the subdivision elected not to be connected to the Oscoda water system. The Oscoda County Health Department continued to assess conditions at the site and sampled liquids contained in an underground storage tank near the northeastern side of the site in 1980. Upon finding TCE and other solvents, the tank was removed.

In 1981, the state installed seven monitoring wells, determined that the groundwater flow beneath the site was to the northeast, and confirmed solvent contamination. In 1985, the Hedblum Industries property was purchased by Aircraft Tool Supply, which currently produces aircraft parts at the site. About 13,700 people live in the greater area. The closest residence is about 350 feet from the site. An industrial park is located less than one mile north of the site. Most of the Oscoda and Au Sable township populations (about 9,500 people) live within a three-mile radius of the site.

Site Responsibility

This site is being addressed through potentially responsible parties' actions under federal enforcement actions.  Potentially Responsible Parties (PRP) are parties whom EPA has determined may be legally responsible for the site's contamination.

Threats and Contaminants

Groundwater and soil are contaminated with volatile organic compounds (VOCs), including TCE. Surface waters of the bayou northeast of the Au Sable Heights subdivision show low levels of VOCs, including TCE and vinyl chloride. Residents of Au Sable Heights who use private wells may be exposed to contaminants when drinking or using groundwater. Residents may also be exposed by breathing the volatilized chemicals, which can seep through the subsurface porous soils into basements and crawl spaces.

A sampling of residential wells in 1990 found no VOC contaminants above detection limits. Since onsite groundwater flows northeast toward the bayou, area residents may be exposed to site-related contaminants when coming into direct contact with the bayou's surface water and sediments. This exposure would be minimal. Contaminants could migrate into the Au Sable River through sediments and surface waters of the bayou and a creek that feeds into the river. 

Cleanup Progress

After a careful evaluation of several alternatives, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) explained how the site contamination would be addressed in the the September 29, 1989 Record of Decision (ROD), a public document that explains cleanup alternatives. The remedial action (RA) included: extraction, treatment, and monitoring of contaminated groundwater in the Au Sable Heights subdivision; abandonment of six older groundwater monitoring wells; and collection and analysis of onsite soil samples. A PRP, under a federal enforcement action, completed the groundwater treatment system design in 1992. The construction of the groundwater treatment system was also completed that same year. To date, over seven-billion gallons of contaminated groundwater have been treated. While treatment is taking place, the U.S. EPA and MDEQ are currently working with the PRP to ensure compliance with the enforcement action so that the groundwater plume is effectively captured.

The first five-year review was completed September 30, 1999. The purpose of five-year reviews is to determine whether the remedy at a site still protects human health and the environment. Five-year reviews identify issues or deficiencies found during the review process for the site, and provide recommendations to address or correct them. The methods, findings, and conclusions of the review are documented in the five-year review report. The review determined that although the site remedy was protective, the RA was not being performed effectively, thus requiring more than the projected five years to restore the groundwater.

In April 2004, U.S. EPA and MDEQ began planning the second five-year review for the Hedblum Industries site. The review was completed in September 2004. As part of this process, U.S. EPA and MDEQ reviewed all groundwater monitoring data collected under the operation and maintenance (O&M) program in order to evaluate the current Site status. The September 2004 five-year review concluded that further investigation, such as vertical aquifer sampling (VAS), was needed to better define the plume and to evaluate the need for expanding the RA groundwater extraction system. Thus, a determination of whether the remedy was protective of human health and the environment was deferred to a later time.

The VAS investigation and studies to optimize the groundwater extraction system were performed by MDEQ during summer 2005. In coordination with U.S. EPA, an investigation report was released in November 2005 indicating that the existing RA was not capturing the plume effectively, and that the groundwater extraction and treatment system must be expanded and operated more effectively.  Additional data collection was independently performed in 2005 and 2006 by MDEQ and the PRPs. The sampling included the private wells of those residents still using the wells for drinking water or other purposes.  To date, only one resident voluntarily uses a private well for drinking and other household needs.  A few residents use a private well solely for outdoor activities.  All residents have been notified and advised to discontinue use of these wells. 

The U.S. EPA and MDEQ are currently reviewing a proposal by the PRPs to improve the groundwater cleanup.  Their proposal is to install a large recirculation well system in the plume area that would operate in addition to the existing groundwater extraction and treatment system.  The proposal also includes actions to improve the operation and maintenance of the current plume capture system. The goal of the PRPs, using the proposed system, is to clean up the groundwater contamination plume by the next five-year review in 2009.

Community Involvement

The Au Sable township utilities superintendant has been working with U.S. EPA and MDEQ to identify residences with service connections to the municipal supply and to track the use of private wells in the Au Sable Heights subdivision.

Contacts

Remedial Project Manager, U.S. EPA
sheila sullivan (sullivan.sheila@epa.gov)
(312) 886-5251

Community Involvement Coordinator, U.S. EPA
bob paulson
(312) 886-0272

Site Profile Information

This profile provides you with information on EPA's cleanup progress at this Superfund site.