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NPL Site Narrative for National Electric Coil/Cooper Industries
NATIONAL ELECTRIC COIL CO./COOPER INDUSTRIES
Dayhoit, Kentucky
Federal Register Notice: October 14, 1992Conditions at Proposal (July 29, 1991): The National Electric Coil Co./Cooper Industries site covers 3.5 acres on "Old Route 119" adjacent to the Cumberland River in Dayhoit, Harlan County, Kentucky. The surrounding area is generally sparsely populated, although several residences are adjacent to the facility, which has approximately 20 workers.
In 1951, National Electric Coil Co. began operating the facility under the ownership of McGraw-Edison Co. In 1985, Cooper Industries of Houston, Texas, acquired the facility and property when it took over McGraw-Edison. In 1987, the facility and property were sold to Treen Land Co. Currently, both are leased to National Electric Services, Inc.
Activities at this facility included rebuilding electric motors and transformers used in the coal mining industry. During 1951-87, National Electric Coil cleaned the equipment in a 4,000-gallon vat of trichloroethene (TCE) prior to servicing, according to EPA. Periodically, the vat was cleaned, and the liquid solvent and oils were allowed to flow overland and/or through a drainage system to the Cumberland River. Sludge from the vat was disposed of along the river bank. Also, PCB-laden oil was drained from transformers on-site and allowed to flow through a piping system to the river. Waste generated by an unvented lead furnace on-site was disposed of in unregulated landfills in the area.
In February 1989, the Kentucky Department of Environmental Protection (KDEP) detected dichloroethene (DCE) and vinyl chloride in several nearby residential/community wells. Users of the wells were then provided with municipal water. In subsequent investigations by EPA, Cooper Industries, and Treen Land Co., the same two chemicals, as well as TCE, methylene chloride, and PCBs, were detected on-site in ground water and soil and off-site (except for vinyl chloride) in soil. Vinyl chloride and DCE were detected in off-site ground water. An estimated 1,750 people obtain drinking water from public and private wells within 4 miles of the site, the nearest a contaminated private well within 300 feet of the site.
In October 1990, EPA issued a CERCLA Unilateral Administrative Order requiring McGraw Edison Co., Cooper Industries, Inc., Treen Land Co., and National Electric Services, Inc., to remove contaminated on-site soils to stabilize the source of contamination. Approximately 5,100 tons of soil were excavated and transported to a facility regulated under Subtitle C of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.
Status (October 1992): In March 1992, EPA determined that all actions under the October 1990 order had been completed. In May 1992, Cooper Industries, Inc., and EPA signed a CERCLA Administrative Order on Consent calling for Cooper to conduct a Remedial Investigation/Feasibility Study (RI/FS) to determine the type and extent of contamination at the site and identify alternatives for remedial action. EPA will oversee all RI/FS and related site activities to ensure that Cooper complies with all applicable laws and regulations and that the work proceeds in a timely fashion. In the meantime, EPA proposed an interim remedial action to prevent further migration of contaminated ground water in the bedrock aquifer and to start to restore the ground water while the RI/FS and other post-RI/FS activities are being completed. The interim remedial action specifies use of an air stripper tower and carbon filtration unit intended to remove approximately 99% of the volatile organic compounds in the ground water. The interim remedial action does not involve the shallow aquifer and is not meant to constitute a final remedial action for the bedrock aquifer. The proposed action was subject to public comment from July 15 to August 14, 1992. To date, no Administrative Order has been signed to implement the action.
For more information about the hazardous substances identified in this narrative summary, including general information regarding the effects of exposure to these substances on human health, please see the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) ToxFAQs. ATSDR ToxFAQs can be found on the Internet at http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/toxfaq.html or by telephone at 1-888-42-ATSDR or 1-888-422-8737.