Whitehouse Oil Pits

• Site Profile
• Administrative Record Index (All PDF): Removal (1 pp., 46K), OU1 (4 pp., 163K), Addendum (5 pp., 158K), Amend (19 pp., 1.0M), ESD 2( pp., 129K)
• Remedial Cleanup Photographs:
       Preconstruction
       December 2003
       January/February 2004
       March 2004
       April 2004
       May-June 2004
       July 2004
       Post-Hurricane Frances
• Ready for Reuse Fact Sheet (PDF, 1 pp., 130K)
• January 2004 Fact Sheet (PDF, 4 pp., 456K)
• October 2003 Fact Sheet (PDF, 4 pp., 114K)
• March 2001 Fact Sheet (PDF, 4 pp., 1M)
• Record of Decision, AMD, ESD OU1
• For documents not available on the website, please contact the Region 4 Freedom of Information Office (http://www.epa.gov/region4/foiapgs/submit.htm).

Site Description:The Whitehouse Oil Pits site occupies approximately 7 acres of an upland area immediately adjacent to a cypress swamp. The site consisted of seven unlined pits, constructed by Allied Petroleum, where disposal of contaminated acidic waste oil sludges from an oil reclaiming process took place. The pits were constructed and filled between 1958 and 1968. In 1968, Allied Petroleum went bankrupt. The City of Jacksonville then assumed ownership of the property by tax default. In 1976, the dike around one of the pits ruptured, spilling approximately 200,000 gallons of waste into wetlands along McGirts Creek. The pit was backfilled after the incident. Afterwards, the City of Jacksonville installed and operated a treatment and dewatering system at the oil pits. A second pit released its contents in 1976. Contamination also has been detected in the surficial groundwater aquifer beneath the site. The site is located in Jacksonville, Florida, in a rural/suburban area about 10 miles west of downtown Jacksonville. Most of the residents use private wells for drinking water, though no contamination above health-based levels has been detected in residential wells.

Groundwater, soil, and sediment are contaminated with heavy metals, polychlorinated biphenyl compounds, semi-volatile organic compounds, and volatile organic compounds from the wastes disposed of at the site. Releases of wastes have contaminated the nearby wetlands areas.

Cleanup Progress: Actual Construction Completed

EPA and the City of Jacksonville conducted several initial response actions to stabilize site conditions and to prevent the spread of contamination prior to the final cleanup. A water treatment system was used to drain the contaminated liquids from the pits. The physical stability of the remaining waste was then improved by placement of construction debris and other backfill materials. A soil cover was placed over the fill and seeded. Ditches were constructed to control runoff, and a fence was erected around the perimeter of the site to restrict access.

In 1985, EPA selected a containment remedy to address soil contamination and a pump and treat system to address contaminated groundwater. Following subsequent treatability and feasibility studies, EPA amended the remedy in 1992 to require excavation and treatment of wastes in the pits using a combination of soil washing, biotreatment, and solidification/stabilization. However, a Supplemental Treatability and Feasibility Study conducted by the potentially responsible parties (PRPs) between 1995 and 1997 demonstrated that neither the soil treatment system nor the groundwater treatment system specified in 1992 would adequately address site contamination. Therefore, EPA issued an Amended Record of Decision in September 1998.  The selected remedy, as clarified by a subsequent Explanation of Significant Differences that presented design adjustments to the remedy including removal of a lime curtain, identifies the following major remedy components: realignment of the northeast tributary to McGirts Creek to optimize the area of ground water containment; excavation of contaminated off-site wetlands sediment with on-site disposal; installation of a vertical barrier to isolate and contain contaminated soil, sludge, and ground water; solidification/stabilization of the upper two soil lifts across the former pits area; installation of a RCRA-type cap over the vertical barrier and solidification/stabilization area; extension of water lines to homes adjacent to and down gradient of the Site; and engineering and institutional controls including fencing and deed restrictions.  The deed restrictions will be implemented by the PRPs to control future land and ground water use consistent with the operation & maintenance of the remedy

The Remedial Design of the remedy was approved by EPA on September 28, 2000, and negotiations with the potentially responsible parties for the Remedial Action were successfully completed in September 2001. The Consent Decree has been lodged, and the PRPs selected a Supervising Contractor to oversee construction operations.  Property acquisition, was completed by the PRP’s in October 2003, and on-site construction activities started on October 30, 2003.  Following mobilization, clearing & grubbing, and surveying, on-site construction began on tributary realignment. 

The off-site McGirts Creek response action began in January 2004 with construction of an access road and selective clearing of trees and brush.  A cofferdam/access road was constructed around a 5.7 acre wetland area, and contaminated sediment was excavated for on-site disposal.  After confirmatory sampling, the wetland area was restored to the pre-existing grade using the clean cofferdam material and a blend of topsoil and wood chips from the selective clearing.  A mix of wetland tree species was planted in the restored area.  When hurricanes passed through the area in 2004, some mature trees were blown down and long-term flooding caused excess mortality in the planted saplings.  Replanting and removal of downed trees has been completed.  A water main extension, was constructed by the Jacksonville Electrical Authority to provide water service to residents along Machelle Drive (down gradient of the site) and portions of Chaffee Road (adjacent to the site) on a voluntary basis and at no cost to the homeowners.

Solidification/stabilization of soil over the former waste oil pits began in February 2004.  A continuous monolith of blended soil and concrete was constructed over a 5.4-acre area with a minimum thickness of 3-ft.  The monolith serves as both a physical barrier to the waste and as structural support for the cap.  Barrier wall construction began in May 2004.  Installation of 3,100-linear feet of barrier wall to an average depth of 65-feet was completed on July 29, 2005, and quality control testing and capping of the barrier wall was completed on August 23, 2005.  Construction of a multi-layer cap and cover system consisting of common fill to establish the base grade, a geonet gas vent layer, a geosynthetic clay layer, a 40-mil liner, a composite drainage layer (collectively, “the cap”), an 18-in protective soil cover layer, a vegetated 6-in topsoil cover, a gas vent system, and drainage improvements began in August 2005.  Construction of the cap was completed on January 14, 2006, and the final grades and seeding for the cap and cover system was completed on March 31, 2006.  Monitoring well installation was completed on April 28, 2006.

All substantial elements of the physical construction of the remedy were completed on May 4, 2006, and the remedy is currently protective of human health and the environment.  The Operation and Maintenance (O&M) Plan for the Site has been approved, and O&M activities are taking place.  These activities include routine inspection, groundwater monitoring, and inspection/maintenance of the vegetative cover and other plantings.  Initial groundwater monitoring results indicate the remedy is effective in isolating groundwater contamination.