Public Notice: The EPA Begins 2nd 5 Year Review of WPSC Stevens Point Superfund Alternative Site

Summary

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is conducting its 2nd five-year review of the Wisconsin Public Service Corporation Stevens Point Manufactured Gas Plant Superfund Alternative site, also known as the WPSC Stevens Point MGP site. The Superfund law requires regular checkups of sites that have been cleaned up – with waste managed on-site – to make sure the cleanup continues to protect people and the environment. This review is expected to be completed in October 2025.

The 3-acre site was contaminated by a former manufactured gas plant, which WPSC operated from the 1890s to the late 1940s. Processes included coal carbonization and carbureted water gas. Because WPSC is cooperating with the cleanup, this site is categorized as a Superfund Alternative site. The cleanup process is identical to those of Superfund sites.

The EPA’s cleanup included excavating and covering river and pond sediment contaminated with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), banning the use of groundwater, limiting future use of the site, and monitoring the groundwater’s natural recovery.

More information is available in the Stevens Point Manufactured Gas Plant Site Documents & Data section and online at the Portage County Public Library, located at 1001 Main Street in Stevens Point.