![[logo] US EPA](http://www.epa.gov/epafiles/images/logo_epaseal.gif){kind=logo}
| ALTERNATE ENERGY RESOURCES | Augusta, Georgia | |
| Richmond County | 12th Congressional District |
Site Location/Size:
The Alternate Energy Resources (AER) property is a 2.64-acre abandoned
property located at 2936 Walden Drive in Augusta, Richmond County,
Georgia. From 1975 to 2000, AER operated as a commercial hazardous waste
storage and treatment facility.
Site History:
AER began operations in early 1975, when AER purchased the Nimmons Oil
Company property. AER's waste treatment processes included: blending
high-BTU hazardous waste to be used as fuel in off-site industrial
boilers and furnaces; recycling hazardous waste solvents by
distillation; and treating used oils, hazardous and non-hazardous
wastewater, and non-hazardous coolants. AER filed for bankruptcy on
December 13, 2000.
Site Contamination/Contaminants:
The potential sources of site contamination include: soil contamination
that is present at significantly elevated concentrations; a 3,000 gallon
toluene and heptane spill; a 500-gallon release from a rainwater
collection basin; a 13,191 gallon waste oil, inks, and oil processing
residues spill; and a 70,000 gallon former unlined surface impoundment.
Contaminants of concern associated with activities at the AER facility
include trichloroethene (TCE) and tetrachlorethene (PCE). TCE and PCE
were detected in ground water samples and soil samples at concentrations
significantly above background concentrations.
Potential Impacts on Surrounding Community/Environment:
AER was evaluated based on the ground water migration pathway. A ground
water plume, believed to be caused by AER operations, impacted several
domestic drinking water wells located within the Hollywood subdivision,
between 0.5 mile and one mile southeast of the AER property. As a result
of the contamination, the Georgia Environmental Protection Division
(GAEPD) issued a Consent Order to AER requiring the affected domestic
drinking water wells be connected to the Augusta Utilities Department
(AUD) municipal water supply. In May 1987, the majority of the affected
domestic private wells were connected to the AUD municipal water supply.
A TCE- and a PCE-contaminated ground water plume is migrating toward the
AUD municipal water supply system wells located within 2 to 4 miles of
the AER property. Approximately 13,798 people obtain potable water from
the AUD system, and 102 people obtain potable water from private
drinking water wells that have a potential to be contaminated from the
ground water plume.
Response Activities (to date):
GAEPD has issued six Consent Orders to AER addressing violations and
requesting corrective actions. In August 2004, GAEPD completed a
Preliminary Assessment/Site Inspection report for the AER property. On
May 4, 2001, GAEPD inspected the AER property and reported that 499
drums, waste tanks, incompatible products, and liquids in a secondary
containment system remained onsite. On August 17, 2001, AER was listed
on the State of Georgia Hazardous Sites Inventory. From February to
August 2002, Georgia's Hazardous Site Response Program (HSRP) contractor
removed the drums from the property, removed residual waste from tanks,
removed accumulated precipitation from the containment systems, removed
chemicals from an onsite laboratory, decontaminated and removed tanks
and associated piping for off-site disposal, decontaminated secondary
containment structures for unpermitted units, and removed an abandoned
tanker truck from the property.
[The description of the site (release) is based on information available at the time the site was evaluated with the HRS. The description may change as additional information is gathered on the sources and extent of contamination. See 56 FR 5600, February 11, 1991, or subsequent FR notices.]
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.