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Fact Sheet
January 2015
Project Update for Chicago Heights Boulevard Site, St. Louis County, Missouri
BACKGROUND
The Chicago Heights Boulevard Site involves a contaminated groundwater plume located in an unincorporated area of north St. Louis County, Missouri.
At some time before 1988, an unknown quantity of the industrial chemical trichloroethylene (TCE) was released at the Missouri Metals facility, an industrial property located at 9970 Page Avenue, just northwest of the Elmwood Park neighborhood.
This contamination traveled through the soil and into the groundwater. Since then, TCE and other contaminants have been detected in groundwater and vapors in certain areas of the neighborhood. TCE vapors were detected at levels of concern in six homes. Vapor mitigation systems were installed in these six residences to remove the vapors.
In November 2012, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reached a settlement with PerkinElmer, Inc., the current owner of 9970 Page Avenue. The settlement, in the form of an Administrative Settlement Agreement and Order on Consent, requires PerkinElmer to address the contamination.
RESPONSE TO RECOMMENDATIONS
In January 2014, PerkinElmer proposed to EPA that it would offer to install free vapor mitigation systems and perform follow-up monitoring of those systems’ effectiveness in an expanded group of residences in the Elmwood Park neighborhood.
Homes eligible for installation of the free systems include all houses, multiplexes and apartments located generally south of Meeks Boulevard, west of Dielman Road, north of the railroad line running parallel to the south of Chicago Heights Boulevard, and along Elmridge Place on the west end of the neighborhood.
PUBLIC AVAILABILITY SESSION
EPA will hold a Public Availability Session to provide information, answer questions and receive comments on the Chicago Heights Boulevard Site. This session will be held:
Thursday, February 5, 2015
7:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
First Baptist Church of Elwood Park
1452 Dielman Road
St. Louis, Missouri 63132
The session will start promptly at 7:00 p.m.
VAPOR INTRUSION MITIGATION SYSTEM
Throughout the spring and into late summer of 2014, PerkinElmer installed approximately 100 sub-slab vapor intrusion (VI) mitigation systems in both single-family homes and apartment units within the site boundaries. Through August 2014, the VI mitigation system performance verification was done within one month following the VI mitigation system installation at each home or apartment building to verify the effectiveness of the VI mitigation systems. PerkinElmer agreed to sample single-family homes and apartment buildings where VI mitigation systems have been installed on a five-year rotating verification sampling program. Approximately 20 percent of the single-family homes and apartment units will be sampled each year. PerkinElmer will continue to work with EPA to obtain access to any remaining eligible single-family homes within the residential neighborhood without VI mitigation systems so that systems can be installed in those homes.
RESULTS OF RECENT SAMPLING
The results from phase one soil and groundwater sampling at the Missouri Metals property in early 2014 clarified the extent of solvent contamination in the soil and groundwater. Phase two soil and groundwater sampling was completed in the Elmwood Park neighborhood in late 2014, and the analytical results from these samples were provided to EPA in mid-January. Based on these two phases of data, contamination in the neighborhood is in the same general area that was previously defined. EPA will further evaluate the data from both phases of sampling, and work with PerkinElmer to define a third phase of investigation which will evaluate contamination in the bedrock.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
An Administrative Record has been established for the Chicago Heights Superfund site. The Administrative Record contains site-related documents and is available for review at the following locations:St. Louis County Library
1640 S. Lindbergh
St. Louis, Missouri 63131
Mid-County Library
7821 Maryland Avenue
St. Louis, Missouri 63105
Indian Trails Library
8400 Delport Drive
St. Louis, Missouri 63114
EPA Region 7 Records Center
11201 Renner Boulevard
Lenexa, Kansas 66219
Chicago Heights Boulevard Site web page:
www.epa.gov/region7/cleanup/chicago_heights
If you have questions or need additional information, please contact:
Tamara Freeman
Community Engagement Specialist
Enforcement Coordination Office
U.S. EPA Region 7
11201 Renner Boulevard
Lenexa, Kansas 66219
Phone: (913) 551-7094
Toll-free: 1-800-223-0425
Email: freeman.tamara@epa.gov