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MARATHON COUNTY
SPENCER
Congressional District # 07
SPICKLER LANDFILL
EPA ID# WID980902969Last Updated: September, 2008
Site Description
The Spickler Landfill site is a former municipal and industrial dump site, comprised of two fill areas totaling 10 acres on an 80-acre parcel of land. The site is located in a sparsely populated, rural area of Spencer, Wisconsin. The landfill operated as a municipal open dump. I n December 1970, BASF Wyandotte received approval from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) to construct an approximately 10,000-square foot clay-lined sludge disposal area at the landfill for mercury brine muds. Other industrial wastes known to have been disposed of in the Spickler Landfill include kalo dust that contained asbestos, disposed of by Weyerhauser Company, and toluene, xylenes, methyl-ethyl ketone, and methylene chloride, which was disposed of by Weinbrenner Shoe Company.
Private property owners live next to the landfill, including two homes directly west of the landfill and additional homes to the south and southwest of the landfill. The population of Spencer, Wisconsin, reported in the 2000 census, was 1,932 people. All residents use private well water.
Site Responsibility
This site work is being conducted by potentially responsible parties' under federal enforcement authorities.Threats and Contaminants
During the remedial investigation of the Spickler Landfill site that took place in the late 1980s, some landfill gas was detected onsite, and asbestos was confirmed to be present in a landfill cover soil sample. In addition, leachate samples from the mercury brine pit contained elevated levels of calcium (3,340,000 ppb), magnesium (2,180,000 ppb), mercury (666 ppb), and nine organic compounds. Groundwater samples from monitoring wells sampled during the remedial investigation showed exceedences of maximum contaminant level (MCL) drinking water standards for the following chemicals: benzene (8 ppb), vinyl chloride (39 ppb), barium (4,690 ppb), copper (2,250 ppb), iron (4,280 ppb), and manganese (54 ppb). However, results of the investigation showed that groundwater contamination had not moved off the property. As part of the remedial investigation, eight private wells near the site were also sampled. Exceedences of the Wisconsin Drinking Water Standard for manganese, lead, iron, and copper were each observed in at least one well. The standards for these inorganic compounds, however, were based on taste and odor considerations and not on health considerations. One well showed a slight exceedence of the Wisconsin Drinking Water Standard for chromium. Because of the presence of these compounds in background samples, these contaminants were not considered to be site related.
The remedial action implemented under the Record of Decision (ROD) for operable unit #1 (OU1) eliminated direct contact risks through capping of the landfill areas and the mercury brine pit, and landfill gas was controlled by installation of an active gas control system. A leachate collection system also mitigated the migration of contaminants to groundwater. By the time the ROD for OU2 was signed by EPA in 1998, ten additional rounds of groundwater samples had been collected. In 1998, methylene chloride, trichloroethene, and vinyl chloride were detected at concentrations slightly above the Wisconsin Drinking Water Standards in some on-site monitoring wells. Because the exceedences occurred in on-site monitoring wells only and the concentrations observed were relatively low and had been fairly consistent over the ten rounds of sampling, the OU2 ROD did not require active treatment of the groundwater. However, restrictions on groundwater use were required to prevent ingestion of contaminated groundwater.
Cleanup Progress
On June 3, 1992, the Potentially Responsible Parties (PRPs), BASF, Weyerhauser, and Weinbrenner Shoe Company, completed the investigation and study under an enforcement agreement. EPA decided on a site cleanup plan on June 30, 1992, which required upgrade of the existing landfill cap and installation of leachate collection and landfill gas flare systems. The PRPs completed the cleanup design on December 20, 1993, under another enforcement agreement and completed cleanup construction under an enforcement order on September 29, 1995. An additional site cleanup decision document, to establish requirements for site close-out, was signed on September 29, 1998. Currently, groundwater and methane gas levels are monitored annually at the site.
The second five-year review of the site, completed in September 2005, determined that the remedy was functioning as planned and would continue to be protective of human health and the environment once recommended follow-up actions were taken. Recommendations in the review included continued monitoring and evaluation of the effectiveness of land use restrictions. A review of the land use restrictions indicated that agreements related to two easements present on the property, one that was for a mineral lease and a second that related to a right-of-way for an oil pipeline located between the two main landfill areas, may need to be put into place. EPA negotiated an agreement with the owner of the mineral lease to ensure that the requirements in the deed restrictions will be adhered to and is currently negotiating a similar agreement with the pipeline company.
The most recent monitoring well sampling results show vinyl chloride, 1,2-dichloroethane, iron and manganese present in on-site wells at concentrations slightly exceeding Wisconsin Drinking Water Standards. However, concentrations of these compounds are consistent with previous results, and no increasing trends have been observed.
Contacts
Remedial Project Manager, U.S. EPAmary tierney (tierney.mary@epa.gov)
(312) 886-4785
Community Involvement Coordinator, U.S. EPA
rafael gonzalez
(312) 886-0269
Aliases
SPICKLER LDFL