Reilly Tar & Chemical Corp. (Indianapolis Plant)

Site Information

Indianapolis, IN (Marion County)
EPA ID# IND000807107
Site Listing Narrative (PDF) (26K)
NPL Fact Sheet
Superfund Site Progress Profile
Alias(es): Reilly Tar & Chem

Contact Information

Community Involvement Coordinator
Cheryl Allen (allen.cheryl@epa.gov)
312-353-6196 or 800-621-8431, ext. 36196

Remedial Project Manager
Dion Novak (novak.dion@epa.gov)
312-886-4737 or 800-621-8431, ext. 64737

Repositories

(where to view written records)

One Library Square
40 E. St. Claire St.
Indianapolis, IN

Links

EPA Superfund Home Page
Region 5 Superfund
Superfund glossary
Superfund Frequent Questions

Agency for Toxic Substances & Disease Registry

Background

The 120-acre Reilly Tar & Chemical Corporation site has been used for the production of specialty chemicals and related products since the early 1950s. Until 1972, a coal-tar refining and wood treatment facility, using creosote, operated on the site. A trench, a landfill, and several pits used to dispose of wastes are located onsite. A lime pond received boiler cooling water. The site is fenced. There are approximately 5,200 residents living within three miles of the site, using groundwater for drinking water supplies. Since the early 1950s, Reilly has opereated a specialty chemical plant on the northern portion of the property. Aboveground tanks and process equipment cover much of the northern third of the site. All residents in the area are now on city water.

Site Updates || Technical Documents || Five-Year Reviews

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Site Updates

December 2009

There have been four Records of Decision for the site for a total of five operable units.

Operable Unit 1 called for the installation of a perimeter groundwater containment system with discharge to the local Publicly Owned Treatment Works (POTW).
OU2 called for thermal desorption for several onsite source areas and the in situ solidification of coal tar in another source area with the installation of a soil cover after solidification.
OU3 called for the installation of a permeable gravel cover over the former wood treatment area.
OU4 called for the installation of a concrete cover over several source areas and the installation and operation of a soil vapor extraction system to treat soils contaminated with organic contamination.
OU5 finalized the perimeter groundwater containment system and selected monitored natural attenuation for the offsite groundwater plume.

All remedies are performing as designed. The perimeter groundwater containment system continues to operate as designed. The onsite thermal desorption and solidification are complete. The gravel and concrete covers are in place and functioning as designed. The soil vapor extraction system was successful and shut down in 2005. Ongoing activities include cap and groundwater monitoring.