Region 8
Serving Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, Wyoming and 27 Tribal Nations
U.S. Magnesium
National Information
Regional Information
Site Information
National Priorities List (NPL) History
Proposed Date
9/3/2008
Site Type: Proposed
County: Tooele
Street Address: Great Salt Lake southwest shore, approximately 15 miles north of the Rowley exit on I-80
Zip Code: 84029 and 84083
EPA ID#: UTN000802704
SSID: 08PU
Site Alias: U.S. Magnesium, LLC
Site Status & Updates
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (the "EPA"), with support from the Utah Department of Environmental Quality (the "UDEQ"), is proposing to list U.S. Magnesium (the "Site") on the National Priorities List (the "NPL"). The NPL is a list of sites -- Superfund sites -- across the nation that are contaminated with hazardous substances. Superfund is the shorthand term for CERCLA (the "Superfund") -- the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act, passed by Congress in 1980 to address the dangers of abandoned or uncontrolled sites contaminated with hazardous substances.
Recent Risk assessments and previous investigations indicate high levels of environmental contamination at this Site. Contaminants consist of: metals, including arsenic, chromium, mercury, copper, and zinc; acidic waste water; chlorinated organics; polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs); dioxins/furans, hexachlorobenzene (HCB); and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). These wastes are being released into the environment and are largely uncontrolled.
Listing the US Magnesium Site on the NPL will enable EPA to use the Superfund law to address contamination at the Site. If EPA finalizes the proposed listing of U.S. Magnesium, the Site would qualify for extensive cleanup under the Superfund program to address hazardous and uncontrolled wastes at the property. A final NPL listing also guarantees the public an opportunity to participate in cleanup decisions through the Superfund process.
Placing U.S. Magnesium on the NPL will help to ensure that contamination is addressed and risks to human health and the environment are controlled. This action will not necessarily halt production at the facility. Overall, a National Priorities Listing will provide EPA the resources and authority to comprehensively address the uncontrolled hazardous wastes at the U.S. Magnesium facility.
Site Description
The U.S. Magnesium facility spans 4,525 acres in Tooele County, Utah. The Site is located in a scarcely populated, industrial area, 40 miles west of Salt Lake City and 33 miles north of Grantsville. The current owners/operators are U.S. Magnesium, LLC and parent company Renco Group, Inc.
The facility is adjacent to the Great Salt Lake, an area that has been designated as a Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network and is being considered as a Wetland of International Importance. It is an ecosystem that attracts millions of birds per year and houses many unique plants and animals as well as certain species of federal and state concern.
The facility has been producing magnesium at the Site since 1972. It uses brine from the Great Salt Lake as the raw material and produces a variety of wastes. There are areas of uncontrolled wastes on the property which investigations show are threatening the health of workers and the environment.
View additional photos of the Site.
Site Risk
EPA and UDEQ have been concerned about releases from the facility to the environment from the Site for more than 15 years. Risk assessments show environmental and human health risks.
Contaminants consist of heavy metals, acidic wastewater, polychlorinated biphenyls (the "PCB"), dioxins/furans, hexachlorobenzene (the "HCB"), and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (the "PAH"). These contaminants have both cancerous and non-cancerous health risks to humans and wildlife and have been released into the air, soil, surface water, and groundwater and are largely uncontrolled.
Birds have been regularly observed in contact with or near contaminated areas on the Site. Observations indicate that many waterfowl die after coming into contact with the contamination. Bird egg studies have documented concentrations of PCB and HCB in all eggs at or near the Site. Additionally, about twenty years ago, the lake level rose and flooded the Site creating an open conduit for contaminants to travel into the Great Salt Lake.
Dioxin, PCBs and HCB are present at levels potentially posing both cancer and non-cancer (diabetes and immune system) risks to industrial workers throughout the Site. Blood testing of workers in 2002 and in 2004 found elevated levels of dioxin and HCB as compared to the general U.S. population.
Community Involvement
EPA announced this proposed NPL listing of US Magnesium to the general public in a public notice which ran in the Salt Lake Tribune, Deseret News, and the Tooele Transcript on September 3, 2008. In addition, EPA informed local agency officials, elected officials, and area nonprofit interest groups in advance of the proposed listing. During the extended public comment period from September 3 - November 24, 2008, any member of the general public could submit comments on this proposed listing via e-mail or in writing. For more information about the proposed NPL listing for the US Magnesium Site, please contact one of the representatives listed below.
After considering and responding to public comment, EPA will determine whether to finalize the Site on the NPL. At that time, EPA will issue another public notice in area newspapers and will update this web page. Should the Site be finalized as an NPL Site, EPA will embark on a substantial and meaningful public involvement process, including, but not limited to, a community stakeholder group, Technical Assistance Grants (the "TAG") for community groups, public meetings and comment periods.
Site Documents
Note: the following documents are Adobe PDF files (about PDF files)
HRS package to propose Site for the NPL
HRS package correction, September 23, 2008
U.S. Magnesium Site Fact Sheet
Human Health and Ecological Risk Assessment documents:
- Human Health Risk Assessment, February 6, 2007
- Human Health Risk Assessment Rebuttal, June 15, 2008
- Ecological Health Risk Assessment, February 5, 2007
- Ecological Health Risk Assessment Rebuttal, June 8, 2008
Contacts
Gwen Christiansen
NPL Coordinator
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
1595 Wynkoop Street
Denver, CO 80202
1-800-227-8917, x312-6463
(303) 312-6463
christiansen.gwen.@epa.gov
Jennifer Chergo
Office of Communication and Public Affairs
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
1595 Wynkoop Street
Denver, CO 80202
(303) 312-6601
1-800-227-8917, x3126601
chergo.jennifer@epa.gov
Chad Gilgen
Environmental Scientist
Utah Department of Environmental Quality
168 North 1950 West
Salt Lake City, UT 84114
(801) 536-4237
cgilgen@utah.gov
Dave Allison
Community Involvement Coordinator
Utah Department of Environmental Quality
168 North 1950 West
Salt Lake City, UT 84114
(801) 536-4479
dallison@utah.gov