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NPL Site Narrative for Umatilla Army Depot (Lagoons)
UMATILLA ARMY DEPOT (LAGOONS)
Hermiston, Oregon
Federal Register Notice: July 22, 1987Conditions at proposal (October 15, 1984): Since 1941, Umatilla Army Depot Activity has occupied about 20,000 acres in northeastern Oregon 6 miles south of the Columbia River in Hermiston, Umatilla County. This NPL site consists of lagoons covering about 0.5 acre. They are contaminated with wastes from explosives as a result of past demilitarization and disposal operations. The major contaminants identified on the base include explosive-derived wastes (RDX, TNT, and nitrate), pesticides (DDT and lindane), organic solvents (tetrachloroethylene and trichloroethylene), and caustic brine. RDX and nitrates are present in ground water beneath the lagoons. This ground water contamination might affect public water supplies serving about 24 people.
The Umatilla Army Depot is participating in the Installation Restoration Program, established in 1978. Under this program, the Department of Defense seeks to identify, investigate, and clean up contamination from hazardous materials. The Army has completed Phase I (records search) and Phase II (preliminary survey).
Status (July 22, 1987): The Department of the Army has developed a draft generic Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and public notice under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The EIS evaluates alternatives for destroying obsolete chemical agents by 1994 as mandated by the Department of Defense Authorization Act of 1986. One of the alternatives involves constructing and operating eight incinerator complexes within the continental U.S., including one at the Umatilla Army Depot. Consequently, in late 1986, Umatilla Army Depot submitted a Part B application for a chemical agent incinerator complex under Subtitle C of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). When issued, the permit would address any releases of hazardous waste or hazardous constituents from solid waste management units on the facility.
Within the boundaries of this Federal facility, there are areas subject to the Subtitle C corrective action authorities of RCRA. However, no such areas were included in scoring this specific site. Therefore, this Federal facility site is being placed on the Federal section of the NPL under the NPL/RCRA policy announced on September 8, 1983 (48 FR 40662).
For more information about the hazardous substances identified in this narrative summary, including general information regarding the effects of exposure to these substances on human health, please see the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) ToxFAQs. ATSDR ToxFAQs can be found on the Internet at http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/toxfaq.html or by telephone at 1-888-42-ATSDR or 1-888-422-8737.