Velsicol Chemical Corp. (Michigan) Superfund Site

Site Information

Velsicol Chemical Corp. (Michigan)
St. Louis, MI (Gratiot County)
EPA ID# MID000722439
Site progress profile for Velsicol Chemical Corp.
NPL Fact Sheet
Alias(es): Velsicol Chemical Michigan, Velsicol Chem St. Louis Pit, Velsicol Chem Corp. Dustmasters Div.
My Environment Map

Contact Information

Community Involvement Coordinator
Mike Joyce (joyce.mike@epa.gov)
312-353-5546 or 800-621-8431, ext. 35546

Remedial Project Manager
Thomas Alcamo
(alcamo.thomas@epa.gov)
312-886-7278

State Contact
Michigan Dept. of Environmental Quality
Scott Cornelius (cornelis@michigan.gov)
517-373-7367

Repositories

(where to view written records)

T.A. Cutler Memorial Library
312 Michigan Ave,
St. Louis, MI

Links

Public Comment and/or Public Meeting

EPA is interested in your comments on the proposed cleanup plan.

The public comment period runs from Feb. 7 - April 7, 2012. You may submit your comments online.

Public Meeting Thursday, Feb. 16, 2012, 6:30 pm, at Nurnberger Middle School 312 Union Street St. Louis, MI.We will also accept oral and written comments at the meeting.

Background

The Velsicol Chemical Corp. (formerly the Michigan Chemical Corp.) produced various chemical compounds and products at its 54-acre main plant site in St. Louis, Mich., from 1936 until 1978. To address contamination discovered at the former plant site, a Consent Judgment was entered into by Velsicol, U.S. EPA and the State of Michigan in 1982. Velsicol agreed to construct a slurry wall around the former plant site and put a clay cap over its 54-acres. The Pine River borders the former main plant site on three sides and was known to also be significantly contaminated. The river sediment pollution was addressed at that time by the State of Michigan. No removal of sediment was required by the Consent Judgement; however, Michigan issued a no-consumption advisory for all species of fish in the Pine River. The fish advisory remains in effect today.

On June 8, 1998, EPA signed an Action Memorandum for an emergency removal action to address the most highly-contaminated spots of Pine River sediments. Sediment removal began in the spring of 1999 and was completed in October 1999. The remaining contaminated sediments were addressed by a streamlined Remedial Investigation and Feasibility Study (RI/FS). A proposeed plan for the cleanup was made available to the public in August 1998. After a public comment period, EPA selected a remedy and signed a Record of Decision (ROD) for the remedial sediment cleanup on Feb. 12, 1999. EPA began work on the river in the fall of 1999 and this large project was completed at the end of 2006 at a cost of almost $100 million. During this period, it was discovered that the slurry wall surrounding the former plant site and the clay cap installed over it were failing to keep contamination on the site and out of the river. EPA and Michigan's environmental agency then launched a Remedial Investigation and Feasibility Study at the main plant site, designating it as Operable Unit 1 (OU1) and designating the Pine River sediments is as Operable Unit 2 (OU2). The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) is the lead agency conducting the RI/FS with EPA's support. MDEQ has included some other nearby areas as part of OU1 in addition to the former main plant site.

MDEQ released the Remedial Investigation (RI) report for OU1 in late November 2006 and held a public meeting to discuss the findings in early December. A copy of the report is available at the public library in St. Louis, Michigan. The report includes the results of site investigation work at the main plant site, as well as at nearby properties. The report found that soil and ground water at the site are contaminated with a variety of chemicals. In 2009, it was recommended that additional investigation be done to more fully define the nature and extent of contamination.

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