Gratiot Area Chamber of Commerce Update on the Cleanup of Contaminated Sites in Gratiot County

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Gratiot Area Chamber of Commerce Update on the
Cleanup of Contaminated Sites in Gratiot County

• Pine River Superfund Citizen Task Force
• Edward Lorenz, Legal Committee Chair
• Murray Borrello, Technical Committee Chair

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Corporate Legacies
From Providing Jobs and Economic Sustenance To
Leaving a Legacy of Lost Resources and Liability
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Overview of Sites
Former Velsicol Site
Smith farm
Horse Creek
Former Total Refinery
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What Do We Do With A Legacy of Pollution and
Environmental Liability?

• Our vision is to restore and sustain our
  community for future generations
• We are guided by modern capital theory (see the
  work of Ismail Serageldin and Stephen Viederman),
  that holds we must protect and enhance our stock
  of
• Natural Capital - our natural resources
• Social Capital - organizations and relationships
  that are the glue holding together common
  objectives

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What Do We Do With A Legacy of Pollution and
Environmental Liability?

• Human Capital - the skills and knowledge of local
  citizens
• Man-Made Capital - our heritage and history of
  infrastructure and artifacts
• For more information on these economic theories,
  see Daniel Mazmanians (Dean of the University of
  Michigan School of Natural Resources) Toward
  Sustainable Communities (MIT Press, 2001).

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Ways The Community Has Been Working To Restore
and Sustain Our Community

• Common Issues Having Economic and Social Impact
• Velsicol Superfund Site - Pine River and Former
  Plant Site Need to be Cleaned
• Former Total Refinery Site - Soil, Groundwater
  and Pine River need to be Cleaned for Reuse
• Oxford Automotive (Formerly Lobdell-Emery) Needs
  to Contribute to Cleaning Their Legacy of
  Contamination Before They Leave
• Smith Farm - Soil, Groundwater and Off-Site
  Migration Needs to be Addressed Before Use

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Update Velsicol Superfund Site

• Cleanup on Pine River began in 1998
• Every year, cleanup has progressed from South of
  plant site north to dam
• 60-70 million has been spent on dredging,
  stabilizing and disposing contaminated river
  waste
• About 100 million will be spent on the river
  cleanup alone
• Projected completion of Pine River cleanup is
  scheduled for 2006 (almost 3 years ahead of
  schedule)
• EPA is very conscious and respectful of community
  wishes/concerns

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Method of Cleaning Pine River Around Velsicol
Plant Site Dry Excavation
1999
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2001
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2003
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2004
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Outstanding Issues Velsicol Site

• EPA/Michigan Dept. of Environmental Quality are
  finalizing a plan to remediate the former plant
  site that is leaking

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Leaking Contaminants
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Outstanding Issues Velsicol Site

• Downstream risk assessment - From Velsicol Site
  in St. Louis downstream (north to Midland County)
  
• Assessing heath risks to humans and other animals
• Conducted by MDEQ
• Developing a workable, economically viable plan
  for reuse of the former plant site (and river, if
  possible)
• City of St. Louis has obtained brownfield grants
• Community has worked together to come up with
  plan for reuse of the site

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Update Former Total Refinery

• Ceased operation in 1999
• Dismantled on-site equipment (completed in 2004)
• Continue to pump and treat contaminated
  groundwater
• Continue to remove contaminated soil
• Dredged Horse Creek as per legal request/claim
  made by PRSCTF

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Horse Creek Cleanup, 2003
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Outstanding Issues Total Refinery

• Former Mid-West Refinery site be cleaned once and
  for all
• River adjacent to former Mid-West Refinery and
  downstream to St. Louis be cleaned

Former Mid-West Refinery
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Update Smith Farm Site

• Dump Site From 1950s to 1970s
• Removal of barrels and dredging of pond removed
  many contaminants
• Topsoil put onsite/grading make it reusable
• Outstanding Issues MDEQ is investigating
• off-site migration of contaminants and will
• develop a plan to remediate the site -

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Update on Health Issues

• Centers for Disease Control (ATSDR) provided
  community education on known health effects of
  PBB and DDT
• Pilot study will be conducted on blood spots
• Can CDC labs detect PBB and DDT levels from blood
  spots
• If so, can we look at population of newborns
  (1960 - today) to see if there are levels of PBB
  and DDT
• Relate any levels of PBB and DDT to known health
  problems of these newborns

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Possibilities
Detroit River
BASF Plant In Operation
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Demolishing Site Structures/Grading Limited
Remediation
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BASF Site, Wyandotte Today
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Astoria, OR BEFORE
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Astoria, OR - AFTER
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Communitys Vision For Redevelopment Of
Velsicol Superfund Site