Region 5 Superfund (SF)

U.S. EPA REGION 5
ANOKA COUNTY
FRIDLEY

Congressional District # 05

KURT MANUFACTURING CO.

EPA ID# MND059680165
Last Updated: August, 2006

Site Description

The Kurt Manufacturing site covers 10 acres in Fridley, Anoka County, Minnesota. The company has been producing precision computer components since 1960. There was a solvent spill into a drainage pit beneath the company's metal shavings' bin storage area. A 140-foot Prairie du Chien bedrock well, used for industrial and potable purposes, was found to be contaminated by tetrachloroethene. The site is in an industrial, commercial, and residential area. Over 163,000 people live within one mile of the site. The company is located one mile from the Mississippi River. 

Site Responsibility

This Deferral Pilot site is being addressed through state and potentially responsible parties' actions.

Threats and Contaminants

Shallow groundwater and soils at the site are contaminated by tetrachloroethene, trichloroethane, cis-1,2-dichloroethylene and trichloroethene. Direct contact or accidental ingestion of contaminated groundwater or soil may pose a health risk.

Cleanup Progress

In 1982, before the site was listed on the National Priorities List (NPL), Kurt Manufacturing conducted a shallow groundwater investigation. In 1983, they installed additional upgradient wells to evaluate the source of contamination, televised and gamma-logged their 140-foot production well and sanitary sewer lines, and installed soil borings, and collected water samples beneath the metal shavings bin. The results indicated that the metal shavings' bin area was the source of the groundwater contamination. In 1984, the shaving bin sump was excavated and capped to prevent further seepage. 

In April 1984, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) issued a request for response action, calling for the negotiation of a consent order for remedial investigation/feasibility study (RI/FS) and design and implementation of cleanup actions. A consent order was signed in August 1984. The site was proposed to the NPL in October 1984 and finalized to the NPL in June 1986. The RI was completed in 1986, and a pump-and-treat system was installed in 1986. A Minnesota Enforcement Decision Document was completed in May 1986. Groundwater monitoring is ongoing. 

All construction is complete, and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) completed a five-year review in March 1994. Most of the system improvements, suggested in the five-year review , were implemented during summer and fall 1994, and MPCA is assessing the results and other portions are ongoing. A preliminary close-out report was completed in September 1995. The Minnesota Department of Public Health (MDPH) completed a health consultation on the site in February 1997.  A second five-year review for this site was completed on February 16, 2000.  A third five-year was completed on March 26, 2005. The remedy at this site remains protective of human health and the environment.

Contacts

Remedial Project Manager, U.S. EPA
thomas smith (smith.thomasl@epa.gov)
(312) 886-6540

Community Involvement Coordinator, U.S. EPA
dave novak
(312) 886-7478

Aliases

KURT MFG CO

 

Site Profile Information

This profile provides you with information on EPA's cleanup progress at this Superfund site.