Hazardous Waste Cleanup: Martinsville DuPont Site in Martinsville, Virginia
On this page:
- Cleanup Status
- Site Description
- Contaminants at this Facility
- Institutional/Engineer Controls
- Land Reuse
- Site Responsibility
Cleanup Status
EPA issued the Final Decision and Response to Comment (FDRTC) on November 16, 2012, for the Martinsville site. The FDRTC incorporated the remedy detailed in the Statement of Basis, which restricts the Facility to industrial use through compliance with and maintenance of institutional controls, restriction on groundwater use, continued maintenance of existing soil capping over ash piles, and recovery of trichloroethylene (TCE) from groundwater. Virginia DEQ (VA DEQ) issued a Corrective Action Permit in 2013 to implement the selected remedy.
In June 2014, the Corrective Measures Implementation Work Plan (CMI WP) was approved. The CMI WP provided a general description of the proposed remedial measures and presented an implementation schedule for the design and construction of the proposed soil and groundwater remedies. The final remedial measures selected are as follows:
- Implement zero-valent iron clay treatment and installation, maintenance, and monitoring of a soil cap at (Solid Waste Management Unit (SWMU) H1.
- Install, maintain, and monitor an asphalt cap at Area of Concern (AOC) Fire Training Area (FTA).
- Implement soil vapor extraction treatment for source soils and enhanced biological stimulation of groundwater at AOC DuPont Precision Concepts (DPC).
- Conduct the required inspection and maintenance of the existing soil and vegetative caps at nine SWMUs and AOCs.
- Continue long-term groundwater and surface-water monitoring as necessary to evaluate remedial effectiveness until clean-up goals are met.
- Implement additional institutional and engineering controls (ICs and ECs) as necessary to prevent current and potential future exposure to contamination.
- In addition, inspection and maintenance of the asphalt cap at SWMU I, the Former Lab Disposal Pits, will be included in the final remedy for the site although this activity is not specifically required by the RCRA Permit.
An environmental covenant, pursuant to the Virginia Uniform Environmental Covenants Act (UECA; Va. Code, § 10.1-1238, et seq.), was recorded with the deed for the DuPont Martinsville site on July 22, 2014. The purpose of the UECA is to notify prospective purchasers of the site of land use restrictions. The current owner and future owners of the site are obligated to comply with the recorded restrictive covenant.
The 30%, 90%, and 100% Design Reports as required by the RCRA Permit were submitted and approved by VA DEQ. The 100% Design Report was submitted as a Class 1 permit modification incorporating the final design of the remedial measures.
A Long Term Stewardship Inspection was completed on May 2, 2017.
On December 19, 2022, an environmental covenant was implemented for the facility.
Site Description
Interactive Map of Martinsville DuPont Site, Martinsville, VA
View larger mapLocated on DuPont Road in Henry County, Martinsville, Virginia, the DuPont facility has been part of this Piedmont region community since the early 1940s. The site is situated within a stream meander of the Smith River, and covers approximately 550 acres. There are over 200 feet of topographic relief across the site.
Various types of waste have been generated and managed at the DuPont facility including nylon wastes, coal ash, spent finish oil, spent nitric and formic acids, and laboratory chemicals.
The site operated between 1941 and 1988, and was one of the world's largest nylon manufacturers. Currently, only the InvistaTM 60-person spinnerette production operation is active. All former nylon manufacturing buildings have been razed.
Contaminants at this Facility
Volatile organic compounds are the main constituents detected in groundwater at the site. These compounds primarily consist of solvents including carbon tetrachloride, tetrachloroethene and trichloroethylene.
Institutional and Engineering Controls at this Facility
Institutional Controls include:
- Groundwater at the Facility shall not be used for any purpose other than industrial purposes.
- The Facility property shall not be used for residential purposes.
- No new groundwater wells shall be installed at the Facility.
- All earth moving activities, including excavation, drilling and construction activities, in the SWMUs and AOCs listed shall be conducted according to the "Materials Management Plan".
Land Reuse Information at this Facility
The facility is under continued use and there are reuse parcels at the site.
Site Responsibility at this Facility
RCRA Corrective Action activities at this facility are being conducted under the direction of the Virginia DEQ with assistance from the EPA.