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Fact Sheet

November 2010

EPA Signs Interim Record of Decision, Garvey Elevator Superfund Site, Hastings, Neb.

INTRODUCTION

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) signed the Interim Record of Decision (Interim ROD) for the Garvey Elevator Superfund Site (Site) June 30, 2010.  The Interim ROD describes the interim remedy selected to address soil and ground water contamination at the source area designated as Operable Unit (OU) 1.  This action is being taken under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), also known as the Superfund law.

In February 2010, EPA, in consultation with the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality (NDEQ), issued a Proposed Plan for interim action to mitigate further impacts to groundwater from the contaminated soils and to prevent further migration of contaminants in the groundwater from OU 1.  The Proposed Plan presented the cleanup alternatives that were evaluated and EPA's preferred cleanup alternative.  NDEQ concurred on the preferred alternative.

In an effort to elicit public comments on EPA's Proposed Plan for this Site, a 30-day public comment period was announced in February 2010.  The public comment period ended March 13, 2010.  A public meeting was held on

February 24, 2010, at the Hastings Public Library, 4th and Denver Streets, Hastings, Nebraska.

After reviewing and taking into consideration all public comments on the Proposed Plan, EPA selected the preferred cleanup alternative presented in the Proposed Plan, as documented in the Interim ROD.  The Interim ROD includes EPA's responses to comments received during the public comment period.

BACKGROUND

The 8-million bushel capacity grain elevator facility formerly owned by Garvey Elevators, Inc. from its construction in 1959 to 2005, is located at 2315 W. Highway 6, approximately 0.5 miles southwest of Hastings. The contamination associated with the Site consists of soil and ground water contaminated with carbon tetrachloride and other volatile organic compounds (VOCs).  A ground water contaminant plume approximately three miles long extends from the facility in an east-southeasterly direction.

Carbon tetrachloride, a common fumigant, was used at the facility until the mid-1980s.  The facility first came to the attention of the NDEQ in 1994, when Garvey Elevators, Inc. notified NDEQ of a spill of fumigants and the presence of ground water contamination at the facility.

Carbon tetrachloride has been found at high levels (29,943 parts per billion) in ground water beneath the facility.  Carbon tetrachloride has also been found in numerous private drinking water wells and in one city well, Municipal Well 13, above EPA's drinking water standard of 5 parts per billion.  Municipal Well 13 has since been designated for emergency use only.  The city is able to meet water supply needs through their existing network of wells.  EPA is providing alternate water to impacted private well users.

AGP Grain Marketing, LLC, (AGP) purchased the grain elevator in 2005. 

On March 27, 2008, Garvey filed a voluntary petition for liquidation pursuant to Chapter 7 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court.

Prior to their declaration of bankruptcy, Garvey Elevators Inc. performed initial investigations and installed and operated a soil and ground water treatment system at the facility.  These actions were performed independently by Garvey Elevator, Inc. under Nebraska's Voluntary Cleanup Program, and beginning in 2005, pursuant to an Administrative Order on Consent with EPA.

EPA initiated fund-lead removal actions in May 2008, to address the immediate threat to human health posed by the contaminated private wells and to implement source control measures to prevent further impacts to the ground water at the facility.  To date, EPA has extended approximately 1.25 miles of water main lines and connected more than 13 residences whose private wells were impacted.

In December 2008, EPA began the federal-lead Remedial Investigation/ Feasibility Study (RI/FS) to fully characterize contamination at the Site and to evaluate potential remedies.  The Site covers a large geographical area and encompasses both contaminated soil and ground water at the source area and a large ground water contaminant plume.  EPA organized the Site into two OU's:  OU 1 is the soil and ground water contamination at the former Garvey Elevators, Inc. facility; OU 2 is the plume of ground water contamination east-southeast of OU 1.

DESCRIPTION OF THE SELECTED REMEDY

The Interim ROD for OU 1 addresses the risk posed by the contaminated ground water migrating from OU 1.  The remedy selected in the Interim ROD will be consistent with the final action for OU 1.  The selected remedy includes the following:

FUTURE REMEDIAL ACTIONS

EPA's remedial process is designed to find a long-term solution to address the contamination at the Site.  The RI/FS for OU 1 and OU 2 is underway.  After implementation of this interim action and upon completion of the RI/FS for OU 1 and OU 2, EPA will issue a Proposed Plan recommending a final action for the entire Site.  This interim action will be consistent with the final action.

AVAILABILITY OF DOCUMENTS

The Interim ROD and other Site-related documents can be found at one of the following repositories:

Hastings Public Library
4th and Denver Streets
Hastings, Nebraska 68901
(402) 461-2346
 
EPA Region 7 Records Center
901 North 5th Street
Kansas City, Kansas 66101
1-800-223-0425

If you have questions or need additional information, please contact:

Jan Lambert
Community Involvement Coordinator
U.S. EPA - Region 7
Office of Public Affairs
901 North 5th Street
Kansas City, Kansas  66101
(913) 551-7768 or
Toll Free @ 1-800-223-0425
E-mail:  lambert.janette@epa.gov

 

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