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NPL Site Narrative for Ouachita Nevada Wood Treater
OUACHITA NEVADA WOOD TREATER
Reader, Arkansas
Federal Register Notice: May 11, 2000Conditions at Proposal (February 4, 2000): The Ouachita Nevada Wood Treater site is located 1/4 mile north of Reader, Ouachita County, Arkansas. The site encompasses an inactive wood treating facility approximately 5 acres in size. North and south of the facility are sparse residential areas. Highway 368 and an active sawmill are located to the east. Rural woodlands, wetlands and an intermittent stream are found to the west and north of the facility. The facility property is not fenced and is accessible to the public. The site is being placed on the NPL based on evidence that hazardous substances, including arsenic, chromium, copper, dioxins, chlorodibenzofurans, pentachlorophenol (PCP), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and several other organic compounds have migrated and/or could migrate from the facility to the adjacent wetlands and a local fishery.
The facility began operating as a sawmill in 1946. From 1956 until 1972, the facility vacuum treated wood with pentachlorophenol (PCP). In 1972, the facility switched from PCP to a chromium/copper wood treating solution. Subsequently, a "black oil" mixture of diesel and motor oil was used in place of the chromium/copper solution for wood treating. In 1985, the owner of the site declared bankruptcy. Since that time, the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) has conducted many investigations at the Ouachita Nevada Wood Treater facility.
In 1987, citizen concerns prompted ADEQ (formerly, Arkansas Department of Pollution Control & Ecology) to conduct ground water and drinking water sampling. PCP and other wood treating constituents were detected in an on-site ground water well. Contamination was not detected in nearby private residential wells. In 1989, ADEQ issued a notice of violation to the inactive facility. The new owner of the property replied that the facility was defunct and that he was unable to remedy the problems cited in the notice. In October 1994, citizens reported to the ADEQ a fire in one of the on-site tanks. A sample collected from the tank revealed the presence of chromium, copper, and PCP. Additional investigations were completed by EPA and ADEQ between 1991 and 1996. Currently, EPA is considering removal actions at the site.
The property contains three surface impoundments that served as emergency catchment for spills from treatment cylinders, six above-ground tanks, ten 55-gallon drums at the south end of the property, twenty-five 55-gallon drums located at the northwest boundary, and areas of contaminated soil. Chemical analysis of surface impoundments, drum contents, and on-site soils have revealed the presence of arsenic, chromium, copper, dioxins, PCP, and several other semi-volatile compounds.
Runoff from areas where abandoned drums are stored and contaminated soil drains toward an intermittent stream and wetlands west of the site. Although the surface impoundments are bermed, a drainage pipe from the westernmost berm allows contents to drain from the impoundments to a man-made drainage ditch that leads to the wetlands. The wetlands and the intermittent stream extend north to wetlands contiguous to the Little Missouri River. Elevated concentrations of arsenic, chromium, copper, and dioxins has been documented in sediment samples collected from the wetlands. A pond located within these contaminated wetlands is used for fishing. Bass, bream and catfish are caught in this pond for human consumption. The confluence of the wetlands with the Little Missouri River is only 1.25 miles north of the site.
Status (May 2000): EPA is considering various alternatives for this site.
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.