Wingate Road Municipal Incinerator Dump

• Site Profile
• Administrative Record Index (PDF): OU1 (11 pp., 441K), ESD (1 pp., 40K),
  ESD2 (3 pp., 156K)
• Ready for Reuse Fact Sheet (PDF, 1 pp., 118K)
• Additional Site Documents including Five Year Reviews, Records of Decisions (ROD) and Explanation of Significant Differences (ESD).
• For documents not available on the website, please contact the Region 4 Freedom of Information Office (http://www.epa.gov/region4/foiapgs/submit.htm).
• Community Update March 5, 2008 (PDF, 2pp., 616KB

Site Background:
The Wingate Road Municipal Incinerator Dump covers 61 acres in Fort Lauderdale. The site includes incinerators, offices, and a 40-acre disposal area, all owned and operated by the City of Fort Lauderdale. The incinerator and disposal areas were used from 1955 to 1978. Residential wastes, commercial wastes, and incinerator residue were disposed of at the dump. At its peak, the facility received 480 tons of waste a day and operated seven days a week. Cooling water was pumped into the incinerators from on-site wells and then was discharged into an unlined lagoon in the southeastern corner of the facility. Ash residues mixed with sludge material from the lagoon were spread onto the ground in the disposal area. Approximately 44,000 people reside within 1 mile of the site, and an estimated 353,000 people obtain drinking water from four municipal well fields within 3 miles of the site. Land use in the area is a combination of residential, commercial, and industrial.
The City of Fort Lauderdale and the Port Everglades Authority conducted the Remedial Investigation ad Feasibility Study (RI/FS) pursuant to an administrative order on consent. The RI/FS was completed in 1994.

Threats and Contaminants

The soil and subsurface soil are contaminated with lead, arsenic, benzo(a)pyrene, beryllium, and dioxin; sediments are contaminated with dioxin, toxaphene, antimony, arsenic, and cadmium; groundwater is contaminated with bis(2-ethylhexl)phthalate, benzene, and heavy metals. Direct contact with or accidental ingestion of the contaminated media from the area of the hazardous substances pose a potential health threat. Elevated pesticide concentrations also were reported in sediments from Rock Pit Lake, adjacent to the Site.

Cleanup Approach

The site has been addressed in a single phase.

Response Action Status

Entire Site: EPA signed a Record of Decision in May 1996. The selected remedy includes excavation of soil and sediment with placement on the landfill, construction of a landfill cap, and monitoring of groundwater, surface water, and fish tissue. Special Notice for Remedial Design and Remedial Action was sent to 39 PRPs in September 1996. Negotiations with Potentially Responsible Parties (PRPs) was put on hold in July 1997 when a Review of the Record of Decision was conducted by an independent review team at the request of citizens who live near the Site. The Review was completed in October 1997. EPA signed an Explanation of Significant Differences in November 1997 to incorporate the recommendations from the Review. The recommendations restricted the capping material to a synthetic membrane and requested that approximately 150 CY of dioxin contaminated ash in the old incinerator building be shipped off site. Settlement negotiations with the PRPs were complete in May 1998. The Consent Decree between EPA and the PRPs was entered by the court on December 28, 1999.

Cleanup Progress

Remedial Design of the remedy was performed in steps, with the final design complete in May 2001.  Debris removal began in August 2000.  Demolition of old onsite structures began in November 2000.  Final cap construction on the landfill began in May 2001 and was construction complete in January 2002.  Operation and maintenance activities are ongoing at the Site.  The first Five-Year Review inspection was performed in August 2004, and the Five-Year Review Report, approved in August 2005, determined that the remedy is functioning as designed.  The next Five-Year Review is due in August 2010.