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BELMONT COUNTY
ST. CLAIRSVILLE
Congressional District # 18
BUCKEYE RECLAMATION
EPA ID# OHD980509657Last Updated: March, 2009
Site Description
The Buckeye Reclamation Landfill (BRL) Site is located approximately 4 miles southeast of the Town of St. Clairsville and 1.2 miles south of Interstate 70 in Richland Township, Belmont County, Ohio. The BRL Site occupies approximately 100 acres of a 658-acre tract of land owned by the Ohio Resources Corporation (affiliated with Cravat Coal Company). The site extends 3,700 feet north to south and is 500 to 1,000 feet wide.
The BRL Site is situated in the Kings Run drainage ravine and bordered by Kings Run to the east and an unnamed stream to the west. Surface water in Kings Run flows to the south and empties into Little McMahon Creek. Property to the east and west is hilly and mostly forested. Farmland and a stripe mine are to the west of the site. Additional farmland extends to the north and northeast.
The original topography of Kings Run valley and the ridge to the west of the BRL Site have been significantly altered because of coal mine refuse disposal activities and landfilling operations that took place for several decades. Deep underground coal mining occurred in the vicinity of the site until the early 1950s and refuse disposal activities created the northern, middle, and southern impounds. Subsequent landfilling operations resulted in the drainage and filling of the middle and southern impounds by 1972 and 1976.
The BRL Site was licensed in 1971 by the Belmont County Health Department for use as a municipal solid waste landfill and operated by Ohio Resources Corporation under the name of Buckeye Reclamation Company until 1991. The majority of the industrial sludge and liquids accepted by the landfill were received between 1976 and 1979 and deposited in or near the northern impound, which was also referred to as the waste pit.
Records indicated a total volume of approximately 49,400 tons of solid waste per year were disposed in the landfill. Solid industrial wastes (e.g., asbestos, carbon black, fly ash) were reportedly commingled with municipal wastes. Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (OEPA) landfill inspection records also make references to unspecified industrial waste being disposed of in the southeastern portion of the landfill. Industrial sludge and liquids were also accepted. Estimated total volumes of industrial wastes received are 2.9 million gallons of liquids (mostly oily type wastes) and 30,000 tons of industrial sludge. Transporter records show that the majority of the liquids were mixtures of oils, solvents, and/or waste water.
In the early 1980s, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) & OEPA conducted preliminary investigations to determine whether potential risks were posed by the BRL Site to public health and the environment. U.S. EPA placed the BRL Site on the National Priorities List (NPL) on September 8, 1983.
Site Responsibility
The BRL Site is being addressed through federal, state, and potentially responsible parties' (PRPs) actions. U.S. EPA is the lead agency overseeing the PRPs’ implementation of the remedy with support by OEPA.Threats and Contaminants
Twelve contaminants detected in the waste pit, soils, leachate, groundwater, and surface water were identified as indicator chemicals during the Remedial Investigation (RI). These contaminants accounted for the majority of health-based risk posed by the BRL Site. The inorganics identified as contaminants of concern were arsenic, beryllium, lead, cadmium, chromium, and nickel. Organic compounds that were identified as contaminants of concern were benzene, trichloroethene, carbon tetrachloride, 1 1-dichloroethene, and carcinogenic polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). The immediate threats posed by the site have been addressed.Cleanup Progress
A PRP search was conducted and a number of parties, including the landfill operator and several generators, were identified. In October 1985, U.S. EPA, OEPA, and six PRPs signed an Administrative Order on Consent (AOC) that required the PRPs to conduct a Remedial Investigation (RI) and Feasibility Study (FS). During the Remedial Investigation soils, surface water, sediment, leachate, groundwater, and air were examined. Sampling results identified various levels of contamination in all media except air. Three sources of contamination were observed: 1) industrial wastes disposed in or around the waste pit, 2) solid wastes disposed in the general landfill area, and 3) coal mine refuse which was placed in the area before landfilling operations began.
U.S. EPA issued a Record of Decision (ROD) on August 18, 1991, that contained the selected cleanup actions for the BRL Site. The cleanup actions, termed a remedial action, included the following work: construction of solid waste landfill cap; installation of a surface leachate seep and groundwater collection system; monitoring of groundwater, surface leachate seeps and Kings Run stream; and treatment of collected waters by constructed wetlands. In 1992, U.S. EPA entered into an AOC with a number of PRPs to design the selected remedial action.
Based on numerous pre-design studies and a review of site history and applicable regulations, U.S. EPA and OEPA agreed to modify the remedy selected in the ROD, and U.S. EPA issued an Explanation of Significant Difference (ESD) on July 17, 1997. The ESD revised the remedy by reducing the size of the solid waste landfill cap, eliminating the northern impoundment, realigning and lining of Kings Run, and deferring the construction of the groundwater and leachate treatment system until after cap construction. The following cleanup actions were completed at the BRL Site in September 2001.
-Construction of solid waste landfill cap over approximately 37 acres with landfill gas collection vent system;
-Construction of vegetated cap over approximately 24 acres;
-Repair of existing cover where necessary over approximately 29 acres;
-Realignment and lining of Kings Run;
-Elimination of Northern Impoundment;
-Installation of surface water management structures;
-Installation of gas venting system;
-Construction of access roads;
-Installation of perimeter fencing; and
-Installation of groundwater leachate seep collection boxes, french drain, and groundwater/leachate transport pipe.
In addition to the cleanup actions on the site, groundwater and surface water monitoring activities were performed to characterize water quality and quantity at the southern toe of the landfill. U.S. EPA & OEPA agreed to make a number of changes to the remedy described in the 1991 ROD based on the results of the monitoring activities. U.S. EPA issued a second ESD for the BRL Site on August 15, 2003. The second ESD revised the remedy as follows: 1) it required that the flow from Kings Run and the landfill leachate collection system be combined for off-site discharge to Little McMahon Creek; 2) it updated discharge standards to reflect current OEPA risk and ecological information; 3) it required two-year monthly monitoring of the combined flow; and 4) it documented that no additional groundwater/leachate collection mechanisms were required. The results of the two-year surface water monitoring report would determine if discharge standards were being met and whether surface water treatment by constructed wetland was needed. U.S. EPA and OEPA are currently reviewing monthly surface water monitoring results.
The first five-year review for the site was completed in May 2004. The purpose of five-year reviews is to determine whether the completed remedy at a site is protective of human health and the environment. The first five-year review determined that the remedy was protective of human health and the environment in the short term because it was constructed as required by the ROD and the ESDs. However, to remain protective in the long term, the results of the two-year monthly surface water monitoring activities must continue to meet OEPA discharge standards. The second Five-Year Review Report will be completed by May 2009.
The BRL Site is now in long-term Operation and Maintenance (O&M) phase. The O&M activities for the site include regular inspections, routine and unscheduled maintenance, quarterly site inspections, and annual explosive gas monitoring and reporting. The BRL Site is enclosed by a 6-foot high, chain-link fence with three strands of barbed wire. Lockable gates have been provided at key access points around the landfill to provide access. Signs posted at 200- foot intervals identify the site as a hazardous area and provide a warning against trespassing. These tactics have proven to be effective measures to limit access to the site and maintain the integrity of the remedy.
Contacts
Remedial Project Manager, U.S. EPAcolleen moynihan (moynihan.colleen@epa.gov)
(312) 353-8196
Community Involvement Coordinator, U.S. EPA
virginia narsete
(312) 886-4359
Aliases
BUCKEYE LANDFILLBELMONT CO LDFL