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Anniston PCB Site
National Information
Photos/Multimedia
Residential excavation work at Anniston PCB site.
-Additional Site Photos (OSC.net)
- Site Video (if available)
Additional Resources
- Site Cleanup Terms - can be found in EPA's glossary
- EPA Guides to Cleanup Technologies
- Superfund Community Involvement (PDF) (17 pp, 130K, About PDF)
Site Summary Profile
EPA ID: ALD000400123Location: Anniston, Calhoun County, AL
Lat/Long: N 330 38' 13'' W 850 51' 17''
Congressional District: 03
NPL Status: Superfund Alternative Approach
Affected Media: Soil, Sediments, Surface water
Cleanup Status: Soil cleanup (removal action) underway
Site Reuse/Redevelopment: Continued use - industrial
Site Manager: Pam Scully (scully.pam@epa.gov)
Site Background
The Anniston PCB site consists of residential, commercial, and public properties located in and around Anniston, Calhoun County, Alabama. These properties contain or may contain hazardous substances, including polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). The site is not listed on the National Priorities List (NPL), but is considered to be an NPL-caliber site and is being addressed through the Superfund Alternative Approach. This approach uses the same investigation and cleanup process and standards that are used for sites listed on the NPL.
Solutia Inc.'s Anniston plant encompasses approximately 70 acres of land and is located about one mile west of downtown Anniston, Alabama. The plant is bounded to the north by the Norfolk Southern and Erie railroads, to the east by Clydesdale Avenue, to the west by First Avenue, and to the south by U.S. Highway 202. PCBs were produced at the plant from 1929 until 1971. Solutia Inc. (Solutia) currently produces polyphenyl compounds at the Anniston plant.
During its operational history, the plant disposed of hazardous and nonhazardous waste at various areas, including the west end landfill and the south landfill, which are located adjacent to the plant. In addition, during the time that PCBs were manufactured by Monsanto Company at its Anniston plant, a waste water stream containing PCBs discharged from the site to a ditch which flowed into Snow Creek. Sampling by EPA, Solutia, Alabama Department of Environmental Management, and other parties has indicated that sediments in drainage ditches leading away from the plant, Snow Creek, and Choccolocco Creek, as well as sedimentary material in the floodplains of these waterways, contain varying levels of PCBs and other contaminants.Threats and Contaminants
EPA has sampled the soil at hundreds of properties in Anniston for PCBs since June of 1999. Many of the properties tested contain PCBs. The level of PCBs detected range from non-detectable to 317 mg/kg.
Site Modeling and Analysis:- Anniston PCB Site Operable Unit 3 Baseline Risk Assessment (PDF) (331 pp, 20MB)
- Anniston PCB Site Operable Units 1 and 2 Baseline Human Health Risk Assessment, September 2008 (PDF) (91 pp, 6.66MB)
Site Cleanup Plan
Solutia is conducting a Non-Time Critical (NTC) Removal Action on contaminated residential properties and a Remedial Investigation/ Feasibility Study (RI/FS) to determine what additional cleanup actions are needed to protect human health and the environment.
The NTC Removal Action includes:
- Excavation of surface soils (top 12 inches) in residential yards where five-point composite soil samples contain total PCB concentrations greater than one part per million (ppm).
- Excavation of subsurface soils (greater than 12 inches in depth) in residential yards where five-point composite soil samples contain total PCB concentrations greater than 10 ppm.
- Cleanup of home interiors with total PCB concentrations in dust greater than one ppm.
More information on the removal action is available on OSCnet.
To better manage the RI/FS, site management activities have been divided into three operable units (OUs), which were selected based on geographic location and complexity. These include:
- OU-1 and OU-2, which were previously separated, have been combined into a single OU (i.e., OU-1/OU-2). OU-1/OU-2 generally consists of both residential and non-residential properties from, and around, the plant and downstream, following Snow Creek to Highway 78.
- OU-3 consists of the plant, the South Landfill, and the West End Landfill.
- OU-4 includes Snow Creek and its floodplain downstream of Highway 78 to the meeting point of Snow and Choccolocco Creeks, and Choccolocco Creek from the backwater area upstream of Snow Creek to Lake Logan Martin. When the RI for OU-4 is complete, EPA will consider whether additional downstream investigations are warranted.
RI/FS activities for these OUs are continuing in order to determine what additional actions are needed to protect human health and the environment.
Cleanup Progress
NTC Removal Action: Residential cleanup began under the NTC Removal Action in August 2004. Approximately 500 properties were cleaned up by the end of December 2008. An additional 30 properties have been identified that require cleanup and sampling is ongoing.
OU-1/2 RI/FS: Sampling is underway for commercial/industrial areas. Residential areas are being sampled as part of the NTC removal activities. EPA has conducted a Human Health Risk Assessment. The RI/FS is currently being prepared. the RI/FS is projected for completion in 2010.
OU-3 RI/FS: Sampling is complete.The results were compiled in a Site Characterization Report, and several addendums along with sampling results collected by the facility under its Resource Conservation and Recovery Act permit. EPA has prepared a Human Health Risk Assessment. The RI/FS is projected for completion in 2009.
OU-4 RI/FS: Phase I sampling is complete. EPA and Solutia will work cooperatively to develop a draft Phase II field sampling plan. Phase II sampling should be conducted in 2010. The RI/FS is not expected to be complete for OU-4 until 2012.
Site cleanup activities are being led primarily by potentially responsible parties with oversight by EPA.
Enforcement Activities
In October 2000, Solutia entered into an Administrative Order on Consent (AOC) with EPA to sample properties in west Anniston for PCB contamination. Under the order, Solutia was required to clean up any property where PCBs are found at a level that could cause short-term health concerns. In October 2001 EPA and Solutia entered into a revised AOC expanding the physical area of sampling and remediation from the October 2000 AOC.
In 2002, EPA and Solutia completed negotiations for performing a RI/FS. The negotiations were memorialized in a Partial Consent Decree (CD) rather than an AOC, to provide judicial oversight of the process and address community trust issues. The Partial CD was lodged in Federal court on March 25, 2002 and was made available for public comment. The Partial CD was revised based on public comment and was entered by the Federal court on August 4, 2003.
The Partial CD also includes an agreement to establish a $3.2 million foundation to assist in funding special education needs for Anniston-area children and up to $150,000 for a qualified community group to hire a technical advisor.
Legal Documents:- Final Consent Decree, October 2002 (PDF) (340 pp, 12.4M)
Community Involvement
EPA has conducted a range of community involvement activities at the Anniston PCB site to solicit community input and to ensure that the public remains informed about site activities throughout the site cleanup process. Outreach activities have included site fact sheets (found below), public notices, and information meetings on cleanup progress and activities.
A Community Advisory Group for the Consent Decree on the Anniston PCB site has also been established.Fact Sheets:
- Fact Sheet Summary of Pathways Analysis Report Operable Unit 01/Operable Unit 02, November 2008 (PDF) (10 pp, 1.1M)
- Human Health Risk Assessment Fact Sheet (PDF) (10 pp, 646K)
- Site Update - June 2007
- Proposed Plan Fact Sheet. September 2003 (PDF) (10 pp, 600K)
- Fact Sheet, June 2003 (PDF) (8 pp, 329K)
- Consent Decree Fact Sheet, October 2002 (PDF) (2 pp, 85K)
- Fact Sheet, August 2002 (PDF) (3 pp, 84K)
- Fact Sheet, January 2002 (PDF) (3 pp, 18K)
- AOC Fact Sheet, October 2001 (PDF) (2 pp, 275K)
- Fact Sheet, February 2001 (PDF) (4 pp, 67K)
Future Work
Sampling of residential properties for PCB contamination is ongoing. An additional 100 properties have been identified that require cleanup.
A Record of Decision (ROD) for the combined OU-1/OU-2 is expected in Fiscal Year (FY) 2011.
A ROD for OU-3 is expected in FY 2010.
A ROD for OU-4 is not expected until FY 2012.Site Administrative Documents
For more information or to view any site related documents, please visit the site information repository at the following location. As new documents are generated, they will be placed in the information repository for public information.
EPA does not yet have a site repository for the Anniston PCB site.
For documents not available on the website, please contact the Region 4 Freedom of Information Office.