Region 5 Superfund (SF)

U.S. EPA REGION 5
HENNEPIN COUNTY
BROOKLYN CENTER

Congressional District # 03

JOSLYN MANUFACTURING & SUPPLY CO.

EPA ID# MND044799856
Last Updated: April, 2008

Site Description

The Joslyn Manufacturing & Supply Co. site is a 30-acre former wood treatment site where wastewater and sludges from a wood treatment process were disposed of in onsite ponds and pits. Joslyn shut down in 1980. The site is in an industrial area. Approximately 800 people live within one-half mile of the site. The site is adjacent to Twin Lakes and its surrounding wetlands. Drinking water for nearby residents comes from a municipal drinking water system. 

Site Responsibility

This site is being addressed through state and potentially responsible parties' actions.

Threats and Contaminants

Approximately 76,000 cubic yards of soil were found contaminated with polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbon (PNA) compounds, metals, phenol, and pentachlorophenol (PCP). An aquifer of at least 30 acres was also contaminated. 

Cleanup Progress

Before the site was listed on the National Priorities List (NPL), Joslyn removed and properly disposed of approximately 30,000 gallons of wood-treating solutions at an out-of-state hazardous waste facility in December 1981 and began waste evaluations of the pond contents and sludge burial areas in September 1982. The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) issued a request response action under the Minnesota Superfund law in September 1983, naming Joslyn as a responsible party (RP) for the site.

On May 30, 1985, MPCA and Joslyn entered into a consent order for the continued investigation and cleanup of the site. The remedial investigation (RI) was completed in January 1986, and an interim response action plan was submitted for the shallow groundwater, middle sand groundwater, dense nonaqueous phase liquids (DNAPL), and contaminated soils in May 1988. In October 1988, Joslyn excavated and disposed of 18,818 tons of contaminated soil in a out-of-state permitted hazardous waste landfill. The remedy for the contaminated aquifer, a groundwater pump out and treatment system, was installed in March 1989. The record of decision (ROD) for the site was executed in July 1989. The selected remedies were groundwater pump and treatment with a discharge to a municipal wastewater treatment plant; DNAPL recovery and disposal; and landfilling and bioremediation of certain contaminated soils.

The Land Treatment Unit was constructed in 1989 and approximately 76,000 cubic yards of contaminated soil have been excavated and treated. Long-term groundwater pumping and treatment with groundwater monitoring and the final stages of the soil cleanup are ongoing. A DNAPL recovery system is in operation to remove dense phase oil, containing PCP. The site is one of 13 NPL sites in the MPCA's Enforcement Deferral Pilot Project. Following a routine site inspection, the state supervised three small removal actions in 1997, and additional onsite soil treatment in 1998 to prepare the site for potential development as a warehouse complex.  On June 3, 1999, MPCA staff visited the site and verified that the remedial actions for Operable Units 1, 2, and 3 were operating as designed; all visually contaminated soils had been removed from all areas except for the west area, i.e., the area of the site for which delisting and development was planned.  A five-year review was signed on July 22, 1999, for the site.  A portion of this site was deleted from the NPL on August 16, 2002. The west area was not included in this deletion. A five year review report dated July 2004 determined that the groundwater and DNAPL remedies are functioning as intended and are protective of human health and the environment.

The MPCA is currently investigating the west area of the site to determine if chemicals are being released from this area.  The west area is fenced off to prevent exposure until a permanent remedy is implemented for this area.  The MPCA estimates that it will present a Proposed Plan for a remedy in the West Area in 2008.

Property Reuse

Parts of the site were redeveloped as the France Avenue Business Park.  Commercial businesses have been operating in the Business Park since 1999.

Contacts

Remedial Project Manager, U.S. EPA
jena sleboda (sleboda.jena@epa.gov)
(312) 353-1263

Community Involvement Coordinator, U.S. EPA
dave novak
(312) 886-7478

Aliases

JOSLYN WOOD PROD PLT
JOSLYN MFG AND SUPPLY CO

 

Site Profile Information

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