INDUSTRIAL EXCESS LANDFILL

SITE LOCATION

Uniontown (Stark County), Ohio; in northeastern Ohio between Akron and Canton.

SITE DESCRIPTION (as of dates of TOSC assistance)

Prior to 1966, the 30-acre Industrial Excess Landfill (IEL) site, located in Stark County, Ohio, was used for mining sand and gravel. In 1966, the mining and excavation pit was converted into a landfill, which operated until 1980. During this time, the IEL received industrial waste primarily from the rubber industries in Akron, Ohio. An estimated 780,000 tons of solid waste and 1,000,000 gallons of liquid waste were dumped onto the ground and into an evaporation lagoon constructed onsite. In 1972, the Stark County Board of Health ordered IEL to stop dumping chemical wastes. Besides industrial wastes, the landfill also accepted waste from hospitals, septic tank cleaning firms, and the general public. The landfill ceased operations in 1980, and was covered with soil.

Groundwater, primarily onsite, continues to be contaminated with a handful of inorganics and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Data from groundwater surveys suggests the level of contamination is decreasing, both in terms of number of contaminants detected and in concentration. There is no evidence to support the presence of a groundwater plume outside of the landfill boundary. Methane concentrations in the landfill gas continues to dissipate, to the point where the existing methane venting system needs to be operated manually 2-3 times/week to ensure adequate flaring is maintained.
Most residents downgradient of the site have connected to an alternate water supply, thereby minimizing potential receptors of contaminated groundwater from the site. Although there have been sporadic exceedances of metals outside of the landfill boundaries, tests of drinking water wells in 1998 revealed that such metal contaminants were significantly lower (i.e., one or two orders of magnitude less) than federal drinking water standards. VOCs were not detected in the drinking water wells that were tested.

Between 1985 and 1988, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) installed a methane gas venting system at the site to control the migration of methane and landfill gases offsite. During the installation of this system, 53 drums of suspected industrial waste were uncovered. These drums were removed and disposed of in an U.S. EPA-approved facility. Residential well sampling performed in 1987 showed that private wells were being impacted by groundwater contaminated by VOCs. The U.S. EPA installed air strippers in the affected residences to remove the contaminants.

In 1987, the U.S. EPA signed a Record of Decision (ROD) requiring that an alternate water supply be installed in an area comprised of 100 homes down gradient of the site where groundwater threatened to contaminate wells before an overall cleanup could eliminate the problem. Under order by the U.S. EPA, several potentially responsible parties (PRPs) constructed the alternate water supply, which was completed in 1991. In July 1989, the U.S. EPA signed the ROD selecting the following actions to clean up the site: covering the entire site with a multi-layer cap; expanding the landfill gas extraction and treatment system; extracting and treating contaminated groundwater; pumping groundwater to maintain the water table at a level that is below that of the wastes in the landfill; fencing the site; placing deed restriction of future use of the site, and continued monitoring of the site. In 1990, the U.S. EPA purchased 22 parcels of land, consisting of twelve residences and two businesses. These properties, which bordered the site, were needed for proper installation of the landfill cap.

The U.S. EPA-prepared Remedial Design of the remedy is nearly complete. The U.S. EPA is in settlement discussions with the PRPs regarding past costs incurred by the U.S. EPA, as well as implementation of the cleanup.

Based on results of latest monitoring data gathered in March 1997 and September 1998, the U.S. EPA public noticed a proposed plan to modify the cleanup plans outlined in the July 1989 ROD. The data indicated that significantly fewer contaminants are present in the groundwater and that the concentrations of those detected are generally lower. Although there are still sporadic exceedances of drinking water standards for metals detected offsite, there is no evidence that a plume of contamination outside of the site boundaries still exists. As a result, the proposed plan recommends that the pump and treat system be eliminated, along with a redesigned landfill cover.

ORGANIZATION REQUESTING TOSC ASSISTANCE

Concerned Citizens of Lake Township (CCLT)

BEGINNING DATE OF TOSC ASSISTANCE

June 1998

ENDING DATE OF TOSC ASSISTANCE

September 1999

INFORMATION CONTACT

Kirk Riley
TOSC Program Manager
Tel: (517) 355-7493
Fax: (517) 432-1550
E-mail: rileyki@egr.msu.edu

SUMMARY OF TOSC ASSISTANCE