EPA RCRA ID: MDD053945432
The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) is the public law that creates the framework for the proper management of hazardous and non-hazardous solid waste. Corrective action is a requirement under RCRA that facilities that treat, store or dispose of hazardous wastes, or did so in the past, investigate and clean up hazardous releases into soil, groundwater, surface water and air. For more information, and for more information on RCRA-specific terms used on this page, please visit EPA’s umbrella RCRA web page or EPA’s RCRA Corrective Action page.
On this page:
- Cleanup Activities
- Facility Description
- Institutional/Engineering Controls
- Enforcement and Compliance
- Related Information and Publicly Available Electronic Records
- Contacts for this Facility
Cleanup Activities
The EPA is the lead agency for cleanups at this facility.
EPA has reached agreement on a proposed Prospective Purchaser Agreement (PPA) with Sparrows Point Terminal, LLC (SPT) regarding its purchase of the Facility. SPT proposes to redevelop the Facility property under a long-term ground leasing program with commercial logistics, transportation, and manufacturing tenants. The PPA requires SPT to perform on-shore work; pay $3.0 million for off-shore investigation and pay EPA’s oversight costs. In exchange, the PPA provides SPT with a covenant not to sue under Sections 106 and 107(a) of CERCLA (also known as the Superfund Law), 42 U.S.C. §§ 9606 and 9607(a), and Sections 3005, 3008(a), and 7003 of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), 42 U.S.C. §§ 6925, 6928(a), and 6973 for "Existing Contamination" as defined in the PPA. As of May 2024, EPA, and the Maryland Department of Environmental Protection (MDE) have completed reviews for the investigation of almost the entirety of the 3,100- acre Site, facilitating the reuse and redevelopment of almost 70% of the property thus far.
Phase II Work Plans
EPA and MDE (Agencies) have received Phase II Work Plans with proposed soil, groundwater and soil gas sampling points based on the location of potential releases from historical processes conducted at that parcel and sufficient additional sampling locations to provide coverage of the entire parcel. EPA and MDE have approved Phase II workplans for all parcels at the site, except B10 and B12. In addition to the Phase II Work Plans, the Agencies review and approve targeted soil and groundwater sampling plans if results from the initial investigations warrant further work. These plans are submitted as necessary and vary in scope and focus (e.g., delineation of non-aqueous phase liquids (NAPLs) or elevated metals).
Phase II Investigation Reports
Upon approval of the Phase II Work Plan, field work can begin at the parcel. Once the field work is completed and the data is validated, an Investigation Report summarizing the sampling results is submitted for the Agencies for review. The only Parcels that remain for a Phase II Investigation and/or Report are B10 and B12.
Final Remedy Selection
Once field work is complete, EPA issues a Statement of Basis in which it described information gathered during environmental investigations and proposes a remedy. A final remedy is selected after the public has had the opportunity to make comments during the public comment period. EPA has a remedy for the following parcels:
- A1
- A2
- A3
- B3
- B4-1
- B4 Remnant Area
- B15
- B16 (Tin Mill Canal)
Response and Development Work Plans
This process ensures that redevelopment occurs in a way that protects human health and the environment. The Agencies have approved numerous Response and Development Work Plans (RDWPs) to date. The following RDWPs are scheduled to be submitted to the Agencies for review this year:
- B13-2
- Container Terminal Area
- B8-1
Other Updates
Tin Mill Canal
Remedy Implementation of the Tin Mill Canal (TMC) was completed in February 2021. The TMC is a constructed swale that currently serves as a conveyance for stormwater runoff and groundwater base flow from an approximately 800-acre local drainage area on the Sparrows Point site and stormwater runoff from an approximately 320-acre off-site residential area. The cleanup effort generally included removal and dewatering of sediment, cleaning of outfalls, disposal of non-hazardous sediments at Grey’s Landfill, and placement of a cap.
Corrective Measure Study – Rod & Wire Mill, Coke Point, and Site-Wide Groundwater
The Agencies anticipate receiving the Site-Wide Groundwater Corrective Measures Study (CMS) in July 2024 and the Coke Point Area Groundwater CMS in August 2024. The CMS for Ride & Wire Mill Groundwater will be submitted after approval of the Site-Wide and Coke Point Area Groundwater CMSs.
EPA anticipates issuing a Statement of Basis detailing a proposed remedy for the site-wide groundwater outside of the Coke Point and Rod and Wire Mill areas after approval of the CMS. The Interim Measures for Rod and Wire Mill and the Coke Oven Areas will continue to operate during the Corrective Measures Studies that are being conducted to evaluate remedial alternatives and develop a recommended final remedy for groundwater.
Offshore
The Offshore in comprised of three (3) areas: Bear Creek Sediment, Offshore Coke point, and Eastern Shore. On September 9, 2021, EPA proposed the Bear Creek Sediments to the National Priorities List, a list of the sites eligible for long-term cleanup financed under the federal Superfund Program. On March 16, 2022, EPA added the Bear Creek sediments site to the National Priorities List. EPA is proposing a Removal Action to address the hazardous substances (including PCBs and metals), oil, and grease found in the contaminated sediment of the Bear Creek Superfund Site.
EPA presented its Preferred Alternative: Alternative #4- Capping with Partial Sediment Removal and Offsite Disposal in the Engineering Evaluation/Cost Analysis (EE/CA) for public comment. After the close of the public comment period, EPA will consider all comments received, consult with MDE, and as appropriate, move forward with a cleanup plan, which will be documented in the EE/CA Action Memorandum. Additional information can be found on The Superfund Program Bear Creek Sediments Site.
Cleanup Actions or environmental indicators characterizing the entire facility are shown below. This listing, and all the data on this page, come from EPA’s RCRAInfo and are refreshed nightly to this page. For this table, a blank in the Status column could mean the action either has not occurred or has not been reported in RCRAInfo.
Cleanup Activities Pertaining to the Entire Facility
| Action | Status | Date of Action |
|---|---|---|
| Human Exposure Under Control Human Exposure Under Control(CA725) | ||
| Groundwater Migration Under ControlGroundwater Migration Under Control (CA750) | ||
| Remedy DecisionRemedy Decision (CA400) | ||
| Remedy ConstructionRemedy Construction (CA550) | ||
| Ready for Anticipated Use Ready for Anticipated Use (CA800) | ||
| Performance Standards AttainedPerformance Standards Attained (CA900) | ||
| Corrective Action Process TerminatedCorrective Action Process Terminated (CA999) |
For definitions of the terms used, hover over or click on the term.
Cleanup Activities Pertaining to a Portion of the Facility
| Action | Area Name | Date of Action |
|---|
For definitions of the terms used, hover over or click on the term.
Facility Description
Link to a larger, interactive view of the map.
The Sparrows Point facility is located on approximately 3,100 acres of a peninsula on the north side of the Patapsco River approximately nine (9) miles southeast of downtown Baltimore. From the late 1800s until 2012, the Site was used for the production and manufacturing of steel. Iron and steel production operations and processes included raw material handling, coke production, sinter production, iron production, steel production, and semi-finished and finished product preparation. In 1970, Sparrows Point was the largest steel facility in the United States, producing hot and cold rolled sheets, coated materials, pipes, plates, and rod and wire. The steelmaking operations at the facility ceased in fall 2012, and the vast majority of the structures have been demolished / removed / scraped. Current plans for the Site include redevelopment over the next several years. Some portions of the Site have already undergone remediation and/or redevelopment.
A broad range of contaminants were detected at the Site associated with the steel making process. Contaminants include: antimony, arsenic, cadmium, chromium, copper, iron, lead, manganese, nickel, tin, zinc, ammonia, benzene, cyanide, ethyl benzene, naphthalene, PAHs, toluene, xylene, coal tar, oils, lime sludge, sulfuric acid, waste alkaline rinses, mill scale, and ship yard wastes
Institutional and Engineering Controls at this Facility
The need for Institutional Controls is yet to be determined.
Institutional and Engineering Controls help ensure human exposure and groundwater migration are under control at a cleanup facility. Where control types have been reported by states and EPA in EPA’s RCRAInfo, they are shown below. Not all control types are needed at all facilities, and some facilities do not require any controls. Where there are blanks, the control types may not be needed, may not be in place, or may not be reported in RCRAInfo.
Are Controls in Place at this Facility?
|
Control(s) Type |
Control(s) in Place? |
Areas Subject to Control(s) |
|
|---|---|---|---|
|
Institutional ControlsNon-engineering controls used to restrict land use or land access in order to protect people and the environment from exposure to hazardous substances remaining in the site/or facility. (CA 772) |
Informational DevicesInformational Devices (ID) |
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Governmental Controls (GC) |
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Enforcement and Permit Tools (EP) |
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| Proprietary ControlsProprietary Controls (PR) | |||
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Engineering ControlsEngineering measures designed to minimize the potential for human exposure to contamination by either limiting direct contact with contaminated areas or controlling migration of contaminants. (CA 770) |
Groundwater ControlGroundwater Control (GW) |
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Non-Groundwater |
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For definitions of the terms used, hover over or click on the term.
Enforcement and Compliance at this Facility
EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (OECA) provides detailed historical information about enforcement and compliance activities at each RCRA Corrective Action Site in their Enforcement and Compliance Historical Online (ECHO) system.
RCRA Enforcement and Compliance Reports from ECHO
Related Information and Publicly Available Electronic Records
For more information about this facility, see these other EPA links:
- RCRA information in EPA’s Envirofacts database
- Information about this facility submitted to EPA under different environmental programs as reported in EPA’s Facility Registry Services
- Alternative Names for this facility as reported by EPA programs in EPA’s Facility Registry Services
- Cleanups in My Community provides an interactive map to see EPA cleanups in context with additional data, and lists for downloading data
- Search RCRA Corrective Action Sites provides a search feature for Corrective Action Sites
- The Superfund Program Bear Creek Sediments Site
Documents, Photos and Graphics
Contacts for this Facility
EPA Region implements and enforces the RCRA Corrective Action program for and federally recognized tribes.
For further information on this corrective action site, use the Contact Information for Corrective Action Hazardous Waste Clean Ups listings that are accessible through Corrective Action Programs around the Nation.