Wamchem, Inc.

• Site Profile
• Administrative Record Index: OU1 (PDF, 8 pp., 210K)
• 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).

Site Background:
The Wamchem site, located in Beaufort County, South Carolina, is a 25 acre site which produced dye products from the 1950's until 1982. As a result of site operations, including a wastewater spray irrigation field, the groundwater and soils were contaminated with acetone, benzene, 1,2-dichlorobenzene, 1,4-dichlorobenzene, naphthalene, toluene, 1,2,4-trichlorobenzene, and xylene. Sediments at this site were also contaminated with acetone, 1,2-dichlorobenzene, 1,4-dichlorobenzene, toluene, and chlorobenzene.

Cleanup Progress: Construction Completed
A final cleanup decision for the site was reached on June 30, 1988. The remedy for this site consisted of low temperature thermal destruction of contaminated soils and the recovery and treatment of contaminated groundwater. On May 19, 1989, EPA entered into a Consent Decree with the potentially responsible party for the design and construction of the remedy. Approximately 1,800 tons of contaminated soils were treated on-site via low temperature thermal desorption and was completed in July of 1994. Construction of the groundwater recovery and treatment system was completed in September of 1996. Performance problems with well recovery rates resulted in an actual construction completion date of September, 1997. The groundwater system is expected to operate for 5 years and treat approximately 200 million gallons of contaminated groundwater.

The US Environmental Protection Agency completed the Third Five-Year Review for the site on April 29, 2009.   The Five Year Review States that the remedy is protective in the short term, and there are no exposures under the existing conditions.  The Five Year Review report also recommended further optimization of the treatment system to assure long term protectiveness.  Annual Groundwater Monitoring is being conducted for the Site.