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EPA Removes Genesee County Site from the Superfund List

Release Date: 12/30/2005
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(#05154) NEW YORK -- After completing an extensive cleanup at the Batavia Landfill Superfund site in Batavia, New York, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has deleted the site from the National Priorities List (NPL) of hazardous waste sites. The 35-acre site, placed on the NPL in September 1983, will remain eligible for additional cleanup work in the unlikely event that a change in site conditions would warrant such an action.

"The landfill once posed a threat to the surrounding community, but we've taken care of the contamination," said EPA Regional Administrator Alan J. Steinberg. "Our cleanup efforts have been successful, and there is now one less Superfund site on the National Priorities List."

From the 1960s until 1980, many companies disposed of industrial wastes at the Batavia Landfill. These wastes included heavy metal sludges, oils, and organic solvents. The Galloway Swamp, a protected wetland, borders the site on the north and east. In 1980, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation declared the property an open dump due to violations of state regulations, and the site was closed.

Responsible parties performed various studies and conducted a number of cleanup actions at the Batavia Landfill with EPA oversight. In the early to mid 1990's, private parties removed 632 drums from the site, with some containing chemical wastes. They also provided city water to residents living adjacent to the site by extending a municipal waterline.

EPA selected a comprehensive cleanup plan for the entire site in June 1995. The plan called for excavating and placing contaminated material under a cap, and removing buried drums and taking them offsite for treatment and disposal. After extensive negotiations with EPA, private parties agreed in 2000 to implement EPA's cleanup plan for the site. They completed all of the required work, and have begun long-term monitoring and maintenance activities. EPA oversaw all activities performed by these parties, and the Agency will continue to monitor any future work at the site.

For information about the Superfund program, please visit the EPA Web site at: https://www.epa.gov/region02/superfund.