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News Releases from Region 04

EPA, N.C. DEQ and Multistate Trust to Hold Public Availability Session and Public Meeting about Kerr-McGee Superfund Site in Navassa, N.C. on Sept. 19

09/14/2017
Contact Information: 
Davina Marraccini (marraccini.davina@epa.gov)
(404) 562-8293
Laura Leonard (laura.leonard@ncdenr.gov)
(919) 707-8233

ATLANTA – Federal and state officials together with Multistate Trust representatives will hold a public availability session and public meeting about the Kerr-McGee Chemical Corporation Superfund Site in Navassa, N.C. on September 19, 2017. Topics will include the recently completed remedial investigation; the planned feasibility study of potential remediation options; the upcoming Community Visioning Workshop; natural resource restoration; and North Carolina recommended limits on consumption of fish and shellfish from near the Site.

What:               Kerr-McGee Superfund Site, Navassa, N.C.

When:              Tuesday, September 19, 2017

Where:             Navassa Community Center, 338 Main Street, Navassa, N.C.

Who:                U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 4
                           N.C. Department of Environmental Quality (N.C. DEQ) Division of Waste Management
                           Multistate Environmental Response Trust (Multistate Trust)
                           N.C. Department of Health and Human Services Division of Public Health (N.C. DPH)
                           Navassa Trustees Council

Press Availability Session – 3:30 to 4 p.m.
Representatives of EPA, N.C. DEQ, the Multistate Trust, N.C. DPH and the Navassa Trustees Council will be available for interviews. Site tours can also be arranged upon request. Members of the media should RSVP to marraccini.davina@epa.gov.

Public Availability Session – 4 to 6 p.m.
The Public Availability Session will provide residents an opportunity to talk one-on-one with experts about the Superfund Site and related matters. Representatives of EPA, N.C. DEQ, Multistate Trust, N.C. DPH and Navassa Trustees Council will be available to answer questions and share information.

Public Meeting – 6 to 8 p.m.
Representatives of EPA, N.C. DEQ, N.C. DPH, Navassa Trustees Council, and the Multistate Trust will provide updates.

Site Background

From 1936 to 1974, Kerr-McGee Chemical Corporation and other companies used the 251-acre Site for creosote-based wood treating. By 1980, Kerr-McGee dismantled the wood-treatment buildings and facilities. In 2005, the Site was conveyed to Tronox, a Kerr-McGee spinoff. In 2009, Tronox filed for bankruptcy protection. In 2011, the Multistate Trust acquired the Site as a court-appointed trustee in connection with the Tronox bankruptcy settlement. The Multistate Trust is working with its beneficiaries–EPA and N.C. DEQ–on the Site investigation, remediation, and redevelopment planning.

The Site is bounded to the east by the Brunswick River, to the south by Sturgeon Creek, to the west by a residential area, and to the north by a light industrial area with an active CSX rail line.

The soil, sediment and groundwater are contaminated by creosote-related contaminants. The groundwater generally flows south and southeast toward the marshes, Sturgeon Creek and the Brunswick River. Site contamination does not currently threaten people living and working near the Site.

Since the quarterly public meeting on June 20, 2017, the Multistate Trust has been working with EPA and N.C. DEQ on redevelopment planning with the Redevelopment Working Group (RWG) of community members and leaders interested in the Site’s future reuse.

For more information, visit the EPA website at https://cumulis.epa.gov/supercpad/cursites/csitinfo.cfm?id=0403028 or the Multistate Trust website at http://multi-trust.org/navassa-north-carolina.

EPA Administrator Pruitt has prioritized Superfund cleanup as part of his effort to refocus EPA on its intended mission.  Under his leadership, EPA will look for ways to streamline and improve the Superfund program, with a focus on identifying best practices with regional Superfund programs, reducing the amount of time between identification of contamination at a site and determination that a site is ready for reuse, encouraging private investment at sites during and after cleanup, and realigning incentives of all involved parties to foster faster cleanups.  In underscoring this renewed focus, Administrator Pruitt said, “I am making it a priority to ensure contaminated sites get cleaned up.  We will be more hands-on to ensure the proper oversight and attention to the Superfund program at the highest levels of the Agency, and to create consistency across states.”

On May 22, 2017 Administrator Pruitt announced a Superfund Task Force to provide recommendations for streamlining the Superfund program: https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/epa-announces-superfund-task-force

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