Central Wood Preserving

Site Description

Central Wood Preserving, a 17 acre site located in an unincorporated area East Feliciana Parish near town of Slaughter (population 827), operated as a wood preserving facility from the 1950s until 1991. The company used creosote, copper oxide, chromic acid, and arsenic acid (copper chromium arsenate) in its operations. Now abandoned and inactive, the soil at the site is contaminated with arsenic, benzo-a-pyrene (BAP), and total polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and the sediment is contaminated with arsenic. Nine residences border the northwest portion of the site.

Current Site Status and Cleanup Actions to Date

• In 1995, EPA removed several structures on the site, disposed of materials in tanks, and removed surface soil near the main facility operations area from the site. In 1999, EPA determined the extent of the contamination and in April 2001, it finalized its cleanup plans.
• To cleanup the site, EPA will use a process called thermal desorption (PDF 65KB, 2 pages) to clean 9,200 cubic yards of contaminated soil and sediment. EPA will also dispose of 19,060 cubic yards of arsenic contaminated soil and sediment and the remaining ash from the thermal desorption off-site. This cleanup will reduce the long-term health and environmental risks associated with the contaminated soil and sediments, and allow the site to be reused for residential and reuse purposes.
• In July 2000, EPA awarded a Superfund Redevelopment Initiative Grant to the East Feliciana Parish Police Jury in Clinton, Louisiana to help the community define redevelopment options for the site. The community has hired a private land design contractor to formulate a reuse plan, which will be completed and submitted to EPA by Summer 2003.
• EPA continues to monitor the site to ensure there is no immediate threat to human health or the environment pending the start of long-term cleanup work.

Current Funding Status

• Approximately $2.3 million has been spent to date for the 1995 emergency response activities and the study and cleanup design activities.
• In Fiscal Year 2003, the site will receive $5 million to conduct cleanup work at the site.

For more information on this site, please read the Fact Sheet (PDF 192KB, 6 pages) on the Region 6 Superfund Web site.

Key Accomplishments