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Superfund Program
Jacobs Smelter
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Site Type: Final NPL City: Stockton County: Tooele Street Address: Smith & Johnson Streets Zip Code: 84071 EPA ID#: UT0002391472 Site ID#: 0801674 Site Aliases: Stockton Smelters Congressional District(s): 01 |
Site Status & Updates
National Historic Preservation Act Process Now UnderwayThe National Historic Preservation Act, section 106, requires federal agencies to take into account the effect of any federally funded work, such as the proposed OU2 cleanup, on potential historic properties. In 2006, EPA initiated a cultural resource survey to identify any potential historic properties. The field work for this effort is expected to be completed by the end of 2007.
Once the cultural resource survey is completed and the impact of the work on any identified eligible historic properties assessed, EPA will submit its findings to the Utah State Historic Preservation Officer (SHPO). If there is likely to be an impact on any potential historic properties, EPA will consult with interested parties to determine ways to avoid, minimize, or mitigate the impact of the cleanup work on these properties.
If you are interested in learning more about this process and its findings, or would like to be involved in the consultation process, please contact the EPA site project manager, Lisa Lloyd, as listed under the contact section of this Web site.
In 2005, the EPA completed a 5-Year Review for the site and deleted the railroad properties (Operable Unit 3) from the National Priorities List. In 2004 the Utah Department of Environmental Quality (UDEQ), in cooperation with EPA, completed a Remedial Investigation, Feasibility Study, and Proposed Plan for the residential and undeveloped areas within Operable Unit 2 (OU2) of the Jacobs Smelter Superfund Site. The Proposed Plan identifies the preferred alternatives for cleaning up contaminated soil. The EPA, UDEQ and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM), a partner in addressing the contamination concerns on their properties within OU2, are currently working together to address historic preservation, endangered species and other important issues pertaining to final cleanup plans for OU2.
Site Description
The Jacobs Smelter Superfund Site is located in Tooele County, approximately five miles south of the City of Tooele, Utah. The site is approximately eight square miles and includes the Town of Stockton and Rush Lake. The Utah Department of Environmental Quality (UDEQ) is the lead agency for implementing work at this site and EPA is the supporting agency. Additionally the BLM is a partner in addressing the contamination concerns on their properties within OU2.In 1998 the site was divided into three geographically-based areas called operable units:
- Operable Unit 1 includes the residential properties within the town limits of Stockton, which were cleaned up in 1999.
- Operable Unit 2 is primarily undeveloped land outside of the general town
limits.
- Operable Unit 3 is comprised only of soils within the Union Pacific railroad right-of-way within the Town of Stockton. These soils were was cleaned up by Union Pacific in 1999.
The Stockton area was the center of a silver and base-metal mining, milling and smelting district from the 1860s until 1970. By 1886, several smelters had been built within the Stockton area. Jacobs Smelter was located on the northeast end of Stockton within Operable Unit 1 and operated in the 1870s. The largest smelter in the Stockton area was the Waterman Smelting Works, which opened in 1871 and operated continuously until 1886. The Chicago Smelter opened on the eastern shore of Rush Lake, two miles south of Stockton in 1873, and operated until the fall of 1880. The Carson Buzzo Smelter was located about a half mile south of the Chicago Smelter and opened two smelters in 1873.
Other smelters operated for a few years and then shut down. The exact locations of these smelters are unknown, but several sites within the boundaries of Operable Unit 2 are suspected due to the presence of elevated concentrations of heavy metals detected during site sampling.
Site Risk
Studies done by the Utah Department of Environmental Quality (UDEQ) and the EPA found high concentrations of lead and arsenic in area soils.
| Media Affected | Contaminants | Source of Contamination |
| Soil | Lead, arsenic | Smelting wastes |
Cleanup Progress
RemovalIn 1999, EPA's Emergency Response Branch cleaned up the former Jacobs Smelter site and 29 of the most heavily contaminated residential properties in Stockton (Operable Unit 1). Contaminated soils were excavated from each property and transported to an off-site facility. The properties were then filled with clean soil and landscaped.
Operable Unit 3
The railroad property in Stockton (Operable Unit 3) also was cleaned up in 1999.
Union Pacific Railroad, under an agreement with the EPA, placed a 16-inch soil
cover over the contaminated soils in their right-of-way. Operable Unit 3 was
deleted in 2005 from the National Priorities List.
Operable Unit 1
A Record of Decision (ROD) for the remaining residential properties in Operable Unit 1 was signed July 29, 1999. In 2000, UDEQ cleaned up an additional 126 properties in Stockton. Contaminated dirt alleys and roads also were addressed. The final phase of work for the residential areas of Stockton was completed in December 2000. The EPA deleted the residential portion of the site from the National Priorities List in 2001.
Operable Unit 2
In 2004 the EPA and UDEQ completed a Remedial Investigation and Feasibility
Study for a few residences and the undeveloped areas within the site. A Proposed
Plan identifying the preferred alternatives for cleaning up contaminated soil
was completed in July of 2004 by UDEQ in cooperation with the EPA. A public
comment period was held to accept comments about the plan and a public meeting
occurred August 4, 2004. Due to the lapse in time since this proposed plan and
potential changes in site status, a new proposed plan will be issued in the
summer of 2007.
Community Involvement
The Utah Department of Environmental Quality, in cooperation with the EPA, maintains regular contact with members of the community and implements a variety of community relations activities as new information becomes available. This includes distributing fact sheets, meeting with community members and local officials, holding public meetings and comment periods, and sharing information with the local media.Although most of the residential cleanup at this site has been completed, residents who are concerned about children's exposure to lead are encouraged to contact the Tooele County Health Department at 435-843-2310. They offer free blood lead testing for children.
The EPA has established an Information Repository containing the Administrative Record and other information about the site. The repository is available at the Tooele Public Library at 128 West Vine Street in Tooele, Utah. The library is open Tuesday through Friday, 11:00 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., and Saturday from 10:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Their phone number is 435-882-2182.
The EPA wants to hear from citizens who have questions or concerns about this site. You are encouraged to contact Jennifer Lane, EPA's Community Involvement Coordinator for this site, at lane.jennifer@epa.gov, or to call 1-800-227-8917, ext. 6813. or to call 1-800-227-8917, ext. 6813.
Site Documents
NOTE: Most of the files below are Adobe PDF filesAbout PDF files
September 30, 2005 Five-Year Review (PDF, 23 pages, 138 K)
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Signature page (PDF, 1 page, 16 K)
Jacobs
Photos (PDF, 9 pages, 48 MB)
Note: this file takes a long time to load. Another way to download the file
is to go to the Jacobs ftp folder,
right-click on the file called "Jacobs5yrReviewAppendixB.pdf" (the file containing
the photos), and copy the file to a folder on your computer.
Annual Update Five-Year Review December 2007 (PDF, 3 pages, 34 K)
Contacts
| EPA
Lisa Lloyd Jennifer Lane
EPA Superfund Records Center Tooele City Library |
Utah
Tom Daniels Dave Allison |
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