Hazardous Waste Cleanup: RACER Moraine Facility - Moraine, OH
Congress amended the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) in November 1984, expanding the Act's cleanup provisions and prompting EPA and its state partners to develop the RCRA Corrective Action Program. The program oversees the investigation and cleanup of nearly 4,000 hazardous waste sites across the country, including many with risks comparable to Superfund sites.
The RACER Moraine facility is undergoing a long-term EPA cleanup under the RCRA Corrective Action Program. The facility includes former manufacturing sites for Delphi Harrison Thermal Systems, the GM Truck Group Assembly Plant, and the GM Powertrain Group Engine Plant.
The Revitalizing Auto Communities Environmental Response (RACER) Trust was created in 2011 by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court to clean up and position for redevelopment properties and other facilities owned by the former General Motors Corp. before its 2009 bankruptcy.
On this page:
- Cleanup Status
- Site Description
- Contaminants at this Facility
- Institutional/Engineering Controls
- Land Reuse
Cleanup Status
The RACER Moraine facility has been investigated to identify contaminants of concern requiring cleanup. Environmental investigations at the facility date back to the mid-1980s, including the collection of groundwater, soil, soil gas, and indoor air data.
A Corrective Measures Proposal (CMP) was submitted in December 2012 to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA). The 2012 CMP included an updated conceptual site model (CSM) and a summary of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) Facility Investigations (RFIs), Supplemental RFI, and additional supplemental investigations completed after the approval of the RFI Report in 2000.
Additional investigations have been completed since 2012, which have provided a refined understanding of site conditions, the overall understating of source location, updated groundwater flow and solute transport model and the understanding of potential impacts to off-site receptors.
Several interim measures have been implemented at the facility to address risks to human health and the environment prior to the selection of a final remedy. This includes waste removal, groundwater treatment, and vapor intrusion mitigation measures. In 2019, RACER began implementing an aggressive dynamic groundwater treatment system to address off-site vapor intrusion risks in an expediated timeframe.
In February 2020, RACER Trust submitted a CMP Addendum, which incorporates this refined understanding into the 2012 CMP. The 2020 CMP includes proposed corrective measures for the facility.
Site Description
The 465-acre facility is in Moraine, Ohio in Montgomery County, East of the Great Miami River. The facility is located south of Dorothy Lane, generally bounded to the west by Dryden Road, to the east by Springboro Pike and Kettering Boulevard, and to the south by Main Street.
The facility has been used for industrial purposes since the 1920s, when the property was acquired by the former General Motors Corporation (GM). Operations at the facility included the production of appliances under Frigidaire (a former division of former GM) and operations associated with automotive manufacturing. This included the machining, painting, and assembly of diesel truck engines; manufacturing, assembly, and painting of small trucks and sport utility vehicles; and machining and assembly of automotive air conditioning compressors, accumulator dehydrators, and miscellaneous air conditioning valves. Many of the historic buildings have been decommissioned and demolished.
In June 2011, RACER Trust sold most of the facility to Industrial Realty Group Moraine, LLC. RACER Trust retained the environmental liability for these properties.
The current operations at the facility include multi-tenant use for commercial and industrial purposes.
Contaminants at this Facility
Groundwater is monitored for the site-specific volatile organic compounds (VOCs) list, which includes benzene, 1,1-dichloroethane (1,1-DCA), 1,1-dichloroethene (1,1-DCE), cis-1,2-dichloroethene (cis-1,2-DCE), trans-1,2-dichloroethene (trans-1,2-DCE), ethylbenzene, tetrachloroethene (PCE), toluene, 1,1,1-trichloroethane (1,1,1-TCA), trichloroethene (TCE), vinyl chloride, and xylenes. Based on the groundwater data that was collected across the Site, concentrations of some VOCs (primarily cis-1,2-DCE, PCE, TCE, and vinyl chloride) exceeded the associated Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs).
Soil gas data for site-specific VOCs (1,1-DCA, 1,1-DCE, benzene, ethylbenzene, PCE, toluene, trans-1,2-DCE, TCE, vinyl chloride, and xylenes) exceeded the USEPA Vapor Intrusion Screening Levels (VISLs) for on-site receptors.
Institutional and Engineering Controls at this Facility
The facility is restricted to industrial/commercial land-use only.
Land Reuse Information at this Facility
Current Site operations include multi-tenant use for commercial and industrial purposes. The RACER Moraine facility has been parceled to facilitate redevelopment. Approximately 16 parcels have been sold to new owners for redevelopment.