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NPL Site Narrative for Woolfolk Chemical Works, Inc.
WOOLFOLK CHEMICAL WORKS, INC.
Fort Valley, Georgia
Federal Register Notice: August 30, 1990Conditions at proposal (June 24, 1988): The Woolfolk Chemical Works, Inc., Site covers 18 acres near the center of Fort Valley, Peach County, Georgia. The company began operation in 1910 as a lime-sulfur plant and has evolved into a full-line pesticide plant formulating pesticides in liquid, dust, and granular forms for the agricultural, lawn, and garden markets. The methods of handling these products over the years have resulted in extensive contamination at the site. Tests conducted by the Georgia Environmental Protection Division in 1985 and 1986 detected metals and pesticides, including lead, arsenic, chlordane, DDT, lindane, and toxaphene, in on-site soil and ground water, and in an open ditch south of the plant.
Three of the five Fort Valley municipal water supply wells are within 1,000 feet of the facility. The system is the sole source of water in the area. Late in 1986, EPA found arsenic and lead in two of the wells at levels below Federal drinking water standards. An estimated 10,000 people obtain drinking water from municipal wells within 3 miles of the site.
State records indicate numerous instances where untreated industrial waste was discharged into surface waters. During a routine inspection in 1979, EPA discovered that the facility was discharging unauthorized waste water from the production of the pesticide dichlorobromopropane into Bay Creek. Records indicate that the majority of the waste waters were discharged into a storm sewer on the site. These effluents would flow into an open ditch located south of the plant and then into Big Indian Creek.
The company has changed hands several times. The current owner, Security Lawn and Garden Products Co., acquired the operation in 1984 from Canadyne-Georgia Corp., which operated the facility during 1977-84. In 1986-87, Canadyne capped one area of contamination and removed some contaminated soil to a hazardous waste facility regulated under Subtitle C of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.
Status (August 30, 1990): On April 24, 1990, EPA and Canadyne-Georgia Corp. signed an Administrative Order on Consent under which the company will 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. The company will shortly submit an RI/FS workplan to EPA for review.
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.