CIC Meeting
January 5, 2006

PDFs of EPA Powerpoint presentations
Human Health Risk Assessment
Ecological Risk Assessment
CIC notes
Rotary Overview 1-3-06

At the January 5, 2005 Citizens Information Committee meeting, the EPA presented news on the three major Superfund PCB contaminated sites in the Bloomington area as well as two non-Superfund sites that are to be cleaned up under administrative orders.

Westinghouse/ABB Plant

The first non-Superfund site is the Westinghouse/ABB Plant on N. Curry Pike, where PCB levels as high as 2100 ppm were found under the concrete slab floor. The plant and the land surrounding the plant were also contaminated with PCBs, and in 1995 and 1996 cleanup took place at the plant, and material was shipped to a TSCA landfill in Utah for disposal. It was in 2002 that the under-slab PCBs were discovered and EPA began studying the west fork of Stout’s Creek to see if the PCBs were migrating from the slab to the creek. Since then negotiations with ABB and Viacom have produced a new plan for demolition of the former capacitor plant, which according to EPA is being “stongly considered” by ABB. Demolition contractors have been to the facility for development of bids for the work, and EPA expects to have a final decision shortly, and work will begin soon after. Demolition of the plant will be completed according to TSCA regulations, using an AOC , (Administrative Order on Consent), with Viacom to remove the slab, sewer lines and soils under slab contaminated with PCBs. The AOC work will begin immediately after the building is demolished.

Floodplain at Fluckmill Road

Viacom will submit a sampling and analysis plan shortly for the newly discovered PCB site on the floodplain along Fluckmill Road in southern Monroe County. Sampling will be done sometime in January/February, and once the contaminated area is defined, removal will occur. A number of removal options are available to the EPA and the State under current laws, outside of Superfund.

Supefund Fund Sites

Bennett’s Dump

At Bennett’s Dump, just west of St. Rd. 37 on Bloomington’s west side, PCB’s continue to emerge from springs on the site, even though the site cleaned down to bedrock. Lowering water levels in nearby quarries as well as creating channels or swails to divert water to Stout’s Creek have been studied. Viacom has recently completed sediment sampling in Stout’s Creek, with all results under 1 ppm. They see little risk in the continuing releases, citing the fact that the fish are too small to eat in Stout’s Creek, and so the major route of human exposure would be limited.

The Proposed Plan for Bennett’s Dump is on schedule for release at the end of January, with 30-day public comment period to follow with a public meeting sometime in mid-February

Lemon Lane Landfill

A Feasibility Study is still under development by EPA for the Illinois Central Springs water treatment plant expansion. Under consideration is a third tank to handle the water volume during large storms, much of which is by-passing the plant. The focus is on the continuing releases to Clear Creek, as the PCB levels in the water are the highest during a storm, and that is exactly when the water is bypassing the plant. EPA has estimated that about 80% of the PCBs emerging at ICS are being captured at the plant.

Calculations nearly completed for an estimate of the volume of PCB contaminated soil/sediment at the Illinois Central Spring emergence, the Swallow Hole (SH) area downstream from the spring, and at the Quarry Springs (QS) area, which is apparently fed by the Swallow Hole. Prior to excavation, additional sampling will be required to finalize the volume.

At the meeting were two EPA scientists who presented summaries of the Ecological and Human Health Risk Assessments for Bennett’s Dump, Neal’s and Lemon Lane Landfills.

James Chapman, Ph.D., Ecologist for the EPA, presented the Ecological Risk Assessment, which had the task of assessing “risks of PCB exposure to mammalian and avian piscivores (mammals and birds that feed on fish)”. The animals chosen as receptors for the study by EPA are mink and kingfisher, both of which were shown to be adversely affected by the PCB levels in the creeks. Viacom has been arguing that raccoons and blue heron should be used, and it is certain that Viacom will present its’ own Risk Assessment (RA) during the comment period, using raccoons and blue heron; this may be one of several points of contention which could end up Federal District Court for settlement. If the EPA’s Risk Assessment modeling is validated by the court, the cleanup standards will have to be much higher than if Viacom’s model is used. This could be a big, expensive difference, especially at Neal’s Landfill, which has 4 to 5 times more water released than Lemon Lane. At present Viacom has not paid a penny of the construction of the ICS plant, and contends that it was sized to big Only recently has Viacom agreed to share ongoing operational costs with the City and State. Like a number of other contentious points, this could land back in Federal District Court for resolution.

Milt Clark, Ph.D., Senior Health and Science Advisor for the EPA presented the Human Health Risk Assessments. Fish ingestion was the greatest risk at the sites, except Bennett’s Dump/Stout’s Creek. It was found that PCB levels in Clear Creek sunfish (fillets) were 7 times higher that the state criteria for fish advisories, and were 74 times higher than the State Ambient Water Quality Criteria. Even though water treatment at ICS has reduced PCB levels in fish upstream, PCB levels are still very elevated at Fluckmill and Strain Ridge Roads. Since no large fish are found in the upper reaches of Stout’s Creek, fish were not considered as a risk vector, but rather dermal exposure and incidental ingestion from wading or playing in the creek bed were used. The assessment concludes that Clear and Richland Creeks have elevated risks from fish consumption using standard risk approaches. PCB levels in fish generally range from 10-100 times State fish consumption advisory levels or ambient water quality criteria. As with the Ecological Risk Assessment, Viacom disagrees with a number of points in the Human Health Risk Assessment, and will not doubt submit its own plan during the comment period. Viacom contends that people do not eat the amounts of fish assumed in the study, that ambient water quality should not be used as a metric, that other PCB toxicity factors should be used, and that there may be uncertainty in the conversion of PCB toxicity to Dioxin TEQ (Toxic Equivalents). All of these technical points will have to be resolved, or again these issues will have to be decided by the Court.

To be placed on a mailing list for announcements of upcoming meetings, contact Stuart Hill at hill.stuart@epa.gov, or keep checking the COPA website, www.copa.org. For other questions about this summary and past or future events, contact Mitch Rice .