![[logo] US EPA](../gif/logo_epaseal.gif){kind=logo}
Fact Sheet
August 2013
Public Hearing for RCRA Administrative Order Announced, Rotary Drilling Supply, Inc., Crystal City, Jefferson County, Missouri
INTRODUCTION
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will hold a public hearing on the Rotary Drilling Supply, Inc. Administrative Order on Consent (AOC), in order to give public the opportunity to comment on the AOC. The hearing will be held at the Crystal City Council Chambers, 130 Mississippi Ave., Crystal City, Missouri [LOCATION CHANGE].
The AOC is designed to abate environmental impacts caused by the unauthorized disposal of coal ash in wetlands and streams on property owned by Rotary Drilling Supply, Inc. The AOC was issued under Section 7003 of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), which states that EPA will provide an opportunity for public comment and a public meeting on settlements under Section 7003(d) of RCRA. EPA held a public comment period on the AOC from May 30 through June 28, 2013.
EPA will be taking comments on the AOC, which finds that the unauthorized placement of coal ash on the Rotary Drilling Supply, Inc. property (Site) presents an “imminent and substantial endangerment” to the environment, pursuant to Section 7003 of RCRA. Specifically, EPA alleges that the placement of the coal ash impacted wetlands and an unnamed tributary to Plattin Creek, as well as a portion of Willers Lake.
The public is encouraged to review the Administrative Record supporting the cleanup activities necessary at the Site. The Administrative Record is located at the Crystal City Public Library.
EPA will make the AOC final only after the public comment period ends and comments made at the hearing are reviewed. EPA may modify the AOC based on any new information and comments from the public on the compliance activities portion.
YOU ARE INVITED
EPA will hold a public hearing on Thursday, August 22, 2013, starting at 6:30 p.m. The public hearing will be held at the Crystal City Council Chambers, 130 Mississippi Ave., Crystal City, Missouri [LOCATION CHANGE]. Citizens are invited to attend the hearing and give comments on the Administrative Order on Consent agreed to by Rotary Drilling Supply, Inc.
If you have questions or need more information, please contact Beckie Himes, Community Involvement Coordinator, at 913-551-7253 or toll-free at 800-223-0425.
EPA Region 7 is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities. If you require a reasonable accommodation to participate in the public meeting, please notify the EPA Reasonable Accommodations Coordinator, Jonathan Cooper, at 1-800-223-0425 or by email at cooper.jonathan@epa.gov at least seven days prior to the meeting. Speech or hearing impaired individuals should email or call using the local relay service.
BACKGROUND
Beginning sometime in the 1990s, Rotary Drilling Supply, Inc., contracted with Kleinschmidt Trucking, Inc. to place fill material in wetlands adjacent to Plattin Creek on the Rotary Drilling Supply, Inc. Site for the purpose of developing a 13-acre commercial lot. Between October 2004 and September 2008, Rotary Drilling Supply, Inc. and another company, Mineral Resource Technologies, Inc., contracted with Kleinschmidt Trucking, Inc. to haul and dispose of coal ash obtained from the Rush Island Power Plant, owned and operated by the Union Electric Company d/b/a Ameren Missouri. During that time period, Mineral Resource Technologies, Inc. contracted with Union Electric Company, d/b/a Ameren Missouri, to find and secure locations in which to dispose coal ash. Between 2004 and 2008, approximately 95,000 tons of coal ash was placed on the Site.
In 2007, Union Electric Company, d/b/a Ameren Missouri, contracted directly with Kleinschmidt Trucking, Inc. to haul and dispose of approximately 45,000 tons of coal ash from the Rush Island Power Plant at the Site.
On February 14 and 15, 2011, EPA-authorized representatives conducted sampling of the unnamed tributary to Plattin Creek and the coal ash piles at the Site. Sample results indicated that elevated levels of coal ash constituents have migrated, and continue to migrate, from the coal ash piles into the unnamed tributary to Plattin Creek and adjacent wetlands on the Site. EPA also performed an ecological risk assessment in March 2012, which includes EPA’s determination that the coal ash constituents have caused irreparable harm to the wetlands on the Site and continue to damage the wetlands and surface waters on and adjacent to the Site.
On April 18, 2012, the Missouri Department of Natural Resources issued Notices of Violation to Rotary Drilling Supply, Inc., Kleinschmidt Trucking, Inc., Mineral Resource Technologies, Inc., and the Union Electric Company d/b/a Ameren Missouri for violations of Missouri’s solid waste beneficial use regulations. The notices alleged that the coal ash was placed on the Site in a manner that was not beneficial and potentially harmful to surface waters.
The RCRA settlement requires Rotary Drilling Supply, Inc. to abate impacts of the coal ash disposal by placing a protective cap over the coal ash piles and installing controls on Site to prevent the continued migration of coal ash constituents into wetlands and other surface waters. Additionally, Rotary Drilling Supply, Inc. is required to mitigate for lost wetlands functions through the purchase of wetland mitigation bank credits.
ADMINISTRATIVE RECORD
EPA has established an Administrative Record which includes a copy of the AOC and other relevant documents. The Administrative Record is available for review during normal business hours at the following locations:
Crystal City Public Library
736 Mississippi Ave.
Crystal City, Missouri 63019
Phone: (636) 937-7166
U.S. EPA Region 7
Records Center
11201 Renner Blvd.
Lenexa, Kansas 66219
Phone: (913) 551-7166
EPA will consider all additional comments received during the hearing and determine whether it is appropriate for EPA to finalize the AOC. Comments will be addressed in a Response to Comments document that will become part of the Administrative Record and will be sent to all who provided comments.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
If you have questions or need additional information, please contact:
Beckie Himes
Community Involvement Coordinator
Office of Public Affairs
U.S. EPA Region 7
11201 Renner Blvd.
Lenexa, Kansas 66219
Phone: (913) 551-7253
Toll-free: (800) 223-0425
Email: himes.beckie@epa.gov