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Capitol City Plume
National Information
Photos/Multimedia
Site Photo Goes Here.
- Additional Site Photos
- Site Video
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: AL0001058056Location: Montgomery, Montgomery County, AL
Lat/Long: 32.382000, -086.306000
Congressional District: 07
NPL Status: Proposed 5/11/00
Affected Media: Ground water, Sediment, Sludge, Soil, Surface water
Cleanup Status: Proposed to the NPL - site investigation and study is underway
Site Reuse/Redevelopment:
Site Manager: Scott Miller (miller.scott@epa.gov)
Site Background
The Capitol City Plume site is located in downtown Montgomery, Alabama. The contaminated ground water plume is believed to exist throughout the downtown area. In September 1993, the Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM) began investigating a report of Tetrachloroethylene (PCE) soil contamination at the Retirement Systems of Alabama (RSA) Energy Plant site at the corner of Monroe Street and McDonough Street.
After 17 months of investigative work, ADEM came to the conclusion that there are a minimum of 6 ground water plumes contaminated with PCE and benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylene (BTEX). The site covers an area from Alabama Street (south) to Pollard Street (north) and Court Street (west) to Union Street (east).Threats and Contaminants
The main contaminant of concern at this site is ground water contaminated with PCE. PCE is a man made substance that is typically used as a dry cleaning or degreasing compound.
Site Cleanup Plan
The Capital City Plume site is in the Remedial Investigation (RI)/Feasibility Study (FS) phase and work continues to assess the breadth and depth of the ground water contamination at the site.
Clean-up Progress
In 1993, soil containing PCE was excavated during construction of the RSA Tower. The soil was removed and disposed of properly. The discovery of the PCE in the soil prompted ADEM to conduct a preliminary assessment of the area near the RSA Tower. The preliminary assessment performed by ADEM concluded that ground water was contaminated with PCE and BTEX.
Field work for the RI/FS began in March 2000 and was completed in 2003. Soil samples and ground water samples have been collected to delineate the areal extent of the contamination plumes. Analytical results from the ground water indicate that the shallow aquifer in the Montgomery downtown area is contaminated with PCE, BTEX, TCE (Trichloroethylene), and metals.
Installation of 16 new monitoring wells and 16 temporary wells has been completed. The City has removed and plugged two shallow drinking water wells at the Court Street Pump Station but continues to pump drinking water from deep wells.
The City of Montgomery has implemented a moratorium on well drilling in the vicinity of the site (downtown area). Beginning in May 2006, the City began monitoring the ground water contamination through monitoring wells. Monitoring will continue for five years. The City will be sending the ground water monitoring data to ADEM and EPA Region 4.
The City of Montgomery has also been working with EPA in implementing a voluntary phytoremediation effort in the ground water plume to reduce risk to human health and the environment.
A supplemental remedial investigation took place in stages from August 2008 to the present. Sample results have indentified sources of contamination and the time at which the contamination was discharged to the environment.
Site investigation activities are being led primarily by EPA and the United States Geological Survey.
Enforcement Activities
Sampling results indicated that there are several viable potentially responsible parties (PRP) for ground water contamination. EPA continues to move forward with an industrial survey and through efforts to recover past costs of remedial investigations and require the current PRPs to implement additional remedial actions at the Site.
Community Involvement
Two public meetings were held on February 10, 2000 to explain the upcoming investigation to interested citizens and to answer questions about the site.
Future Work
Site investigation and ground water monitoring activities at the site will continue.
Site Administrative Documents
Site Repository
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.
Main Branch Library245 High St.
Montgomery, AL 36104
Administrative Record Index
- OU-1 (PDF) (2 pp, 90K, About PDF)
For documents not available on the website, please contact the Region 4 Freedom of Information Office.