EPA adds Eagle Industries to Superfund priorities list
MIDWEST CITY — A contaminated industrial site along Midwest City’s southern border with Oklahoma City was added to the Environmental Protection Agency’s national priorities list for Superfund sites on Tuesday.
The listing signifies the site is one of the nation’s most severely polluted parcels of land. Soil and groundwater around the former Eagle Industries property at 10901 SE 29 St. are contaminated with trichloroethylene and dichloroethane, according to Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality investigators.
“Groundwater resources at the site and the surrounding area are threatened by the contamination,” the EPA wrote in a memo Tuesday. “(Trichloroethylene) has been found in off-site private drinking water wells. The site is an area of recharge for the Central Oklahoma aquifer system, which is a major source of groundwater in central Oklahoma.”
Contamination at Eagle Industries was first discovered in 2003. The company, which had dumped contaminants in violation of state law, closed in 2010 without paying a fine.
Move made at state’s request
The EPA announced in early August it would consider adding Eagle to its national priorities list at the request of
Gov. Mary Fallin. Several months of public comment followed, leading to Tuesday’s announcement.
“Once again, Administrator (Scott) Pruitt is making it clear that he’s focused on protecting the environment by partnering with states to clean up contaminated sites in local communities,” said U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Tulsa.
“By adding the Eagle Industries site in Oklahoma City to the national priorities list, it will give the site increased attention for long-term cleanup efforts and focus on revitalizing the area for development and economic activity,” he added.
The adverse public health ramifications of Eagle’s illegal actions have not dissipated. Trichloroethylene, or TCE, has been found within nearby residential water wells. State investigators distributed a fact sheet to residents that stated the chemical “may cause nervous system effects, liver and lung damage, abnormal heartbeat, coma and possibly death.”
“It is clear that the TCE is migrating, with the likelihood of affecting approximately 30 additional residences and businesses,” stated an internal DEQ memo obtained by The Oklahoman in an open records request. “Eagle Industries lies in Midwest City. The plume of pollution is flowing into Oklahoma City.”
On Tuesday, the EPA wrote, “There are currently no readily available alternative drinking water sources for the 18 family homes south of Eagle Industries.”
Other sites
Three sites in Delaware, Louisiana and Mississippi were also added to the priorities list Tuesday. Pruitt, in a news release, said, “Today’s action ensures the necessary resources are available for effective and safe revitalization of some of the most contaminated sites across the country.”
EPA cleanup efforts could eventually extend to a second Eagle site, where the company operated for decades, beginning in 1957. Since an investigation by The Oklahoman found Eagle employees may have also dumped trichloroethylene at the site, 8828 SE 29 St., state investigators and Midwest City have agreed to test the soil and groundwater there. The property is owned by Midwest City.
Rita Kottke, an environmental programs director at DEQ, told Midwest City council members last month that EPA headquarters in Washington had shown an interest in the 8828 SE 29 site. The EPA contacted DEQ and pushed it to conduct environmental testing, the first step in the Superfund process, according to Kottke.
When soil and groundwater tests are complete in the coming months, several outcomes are possible. The tests could find no cause for concern, allowing Midwest City to develop the 8828 SE 29 site and attract a grocery store or other retail opportunity. The tests could find minor contamination curative with soil extraction and other actions. Or the tests could find dire contamination requiring massive EPA action.