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SUMMIT COUNTY
COPLEY
Congressional District # 13
COPLEY SQUARE PLAZA
EPA ID# OH0000563122Last Updated: February, 2007
Site Description
The Copley Square Plaza Superfund site is located in Copley Township, Summit County, Ohio. The site first came to the attention of the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (Ohio EPA) when there were complaints of an odor in water from wells serving two businesses in the Copley Square Shopping Center - a dry cleaners and a grocery store.
Ohio EPA found that the groundwater contained volatile organic compounds (named that way because they vaporize easily into the air) at levels higher than what Ohio EPA considers safe. Investigations at the dry cleaners revealed that chemicals used for dry cleaning, the same volatile organic compounds as in the groundwater, were being disposed/stored in eight wastewater tanks in the back room of the dry cleaner. Testing showed that the eight wastewater tanks were leaking the volatile organic compounds into the groundwater under the building.
After four years of extensive testing in the 1990s, Ohio EPA asked for assistance from the United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) to protect local residents from the contaminated groundwater and to remove their source, the eight wastewater tanks in the dry cleaner.
U.S. EPA oversaw extensive testing of nearby homes, the installation of water treatment systems in nearby homes with contaminated wells, the closing of eight wastewater tanks at the dry cleaners and the installation of a system to treat the ground water. After the in-home treatment systems were in place and tested to ensure their effectiveness at removing the volatile organic compounds, U.S. EPA turned over the maintanence of the in-home treatment systems to Ohio EPA. Ohio EPA continues to maintain the systems.
In 2000 EPA reviewed the situation at the site, as requested by Ohio EPA, and found the ground water was still contaminated, and there had been no improvement since the mid-1990s. The site was placed on the National Priorities List (NPL) in April 2005.
Site Responsibility
The site is being addressed through federal and state actions.
Threats and Contaminants
Soil and groundwater were contaminated with tetrachloroethylene (PCE or PERC), a volatile organic compound, and its derivatives including: trichloroethylene (TCE), cis-1,2-dichloroethylene (cis-DCE), trans-1,2-dichloroethylene (trans-DCE), and vinyl chloride (VC).
Cleanup Progress
A passive ground water collection system was installed to collect ground water leaving the eastern side of the dry cleaner and water treatment systems were installed in homes with contaminated wells during the mid-1990s. Ohio EPA has been maintaining the water treatment systems since their installation.
Currently, U.S. EPA is conducting a Remedial Investigation and Feasibility Study (RI/FS) of the site, which will determine the nature and extent of the contamination. Sampling has already been completed, and a report detailing the results of the Remedial Investigation is expected to be completed by February 28, 2007.
Aliases
DANTON DRY CLEANERS