Superfund Sites in Reuse in Idaho
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Bunker Hill Mining & Metallurgical Complex
Bunker Hill Mining & Metallurgical ComplexThe Bunker Hill Mining & Metallurgical Complex Superfund site is located in Idaho’s Silver Valley, one of the largest historical mining districts in the world. Mining operations began in the area in 1883 and continue to this day. When the Bunker Hill lead smelter and several of the associated mines closed in the 1980s, the economy of the surrounding area nearly collapsed. Thousands of people were jobless and heavy metals had contaminated the countryside. Local tests found high blood lead levels in area children. In response, EPA added the 25-square-mile area around the old smelter to the Superfund program’s National Priorities List (NPL) in 1983. Cleanup and ecological restoration around the lead smelter have included the removal of lead-contaminated soil from lawns and parks, the containment of millions of tons of mine tailings and the planting of 2 million trees over 2,290 hillside acres. Lead levels in children have fallen dramatically to levels equivalent to national averages. The Panhandle Health District, the State of Idaho and EPA continue to educate Silver Valley children to avoid lead-contaminated areas and accidental lead ingestion, particularly for recreational areas. Panhandle Health District, the state and EPA also developed a comprehensive Institutional Controls Program (ICP) for the site. The ICP provides safe and clear procedures for maintaining the protective barriers that allow for ongoing development in the Silver Valley. EPA is cleaning up the site in three main areas, or operable units. Operable Units 1 and 2 focused on work in the 25 square mile area around the smelter. A cleanup decision for OU3 was issued in 2002 and includes actions in the Upper and Lower Basin through Lake Coeur d’Alene and to the Spokane River in Washington. In August 2012, EPA modified the cleanup decision for the Upper Basin. This change calls for $635 million in additional cleanup actions in this area of the site over the next 30 years. The work includes $54 million for repair of roads and streets in community areas, projects that prevent flooding in community areas already cleaned up, continued property remediation, and source controls at Mine sites. Starting in 1987, the City of Kellogg began to pursue redevelopment opportunities at cleaned up portions of the site. The site is now home to the Silver Mountain Resort, which includes a mixed residential neighborhood, commercial development and 18-hole golf course and a ski area. Cleanup and the ICP facilitated additional development throughout the Silver Valley. This includes a commercial property for a Wal-Mart, a new dialysis center, a 72-mile paved bike trail over a contaminated rail line, and numerous commercial developments that would not have been possible without the cleanup and ICP. EPA has also finished converting nearly 400 acres of agricultural property near Medimont to healthy wetland habitat. The area is now a clean feeding habitat for swans, ducks and other wetland birds. As of 2014, workers have cleaned up over 6,500 residential and commercial properties and repaved over 30 miles of roads in community areas. On average EPA is spending at least $25 million per year on the cleanup and employs over 400 people.
For more information:
- Redevelopment of the Bunker Hill Superfund Site (PDF)(1 pg, 46 K, About PDF)
- Superfund Site Profile Page
Eastern Michaud Flats Contamination
The 2,530-acre Eastern Michaud Flats Contamination Superfund site is located near Pocatello, Idaho. Two on-site phosphate ore processing facilities, the FMC Corporation and the J.R. Simplot Company, began operations in the 1940s. Facility operations are still underway at J.R. Simplot. The FMC Corporation shut down in December 2001. The J.R. Simplot facility produces solid and liquid fertilizers using phosphate ore, sulfur, air and natural gas. The FMC plant produced elemental phosphorus for use in a variety of products from cleaning compounds to foods. Operations at both plants resulted in groundwater and soil contamination. EPA listed the site on the Superfund program's National Priorities List (NPL) in 1990. EPA selected a remedy for the site in 1998 with interim remedies for the Simplot and FMC portions of the site in 2010 and 2012, respectively. EPA signed a Ready for Reuse Determination indicating that 87 acres of the FMC portion of the site are ready for commercial/industrial development. Additional areas may be ready once construction of the interim remedy is complete.
For more information:
- Eastern Michaud Flats Contamination, FMC Plant Operable Unit Ready for Reuse Determination (2010) (PDF) (29 pp, 12.8 MB, About PDF)
- Superfund Site Profile Page
Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (USDOE)
The 890-square-mile Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (USDOE) Superfund site is located in a remote and lightly populated area of southeast Idaho. Established in 1949, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)-managed reservation has been devoted to energy research and related work. The laboratory currently supports DOE’s missions in nuclear and energy research, science and national defense. In 1986, investigators detected contaminants in ground water. In response, DOE identified hazardous waste disposal areas at the site that could pose unacceptable risks to health, safety or the environment. In 1989, EPA listed the site on the National Priorities List (NPL). In 1992, DOE signed a Federal Facilities Agreement with EPA and the state to address site contamination. DOE has since undertaken a number of cleanup actions. Additional cleanup actions and ground water monitoring continue. In 2003, DOE defined two business units, one for laboratory research and development missions (Idaho National Laboratory (INL)) and one for remediation (Idaho Cleanup Project). DOE renamed the 890-square mile facility the INL site. The site currently supports facility and program operations. DOE has reserved parts of the central area for the Idaho Cleanup Project (ICP) and INL operations. DOE conducts environmental research as well as ecological and sociocultural preservation on the remaining land within the site’s core. This area is largely undeveloped. Public highways and the Experimental Breeder Reactor I (EBR-I) National Historic Landmark are the only parts of the INL site with unrestricted access. The federal Bureau of Land Management manages livestock grazing leases within undeveloped portions of the site perimeter. DOE also collaborates with the Idaho Department of Fish and Game to permit controlled hunting within half a mile of the boundary. Though uncertain, future land use most likely will remain essentially unchanged, with research facilities within site boundaries and agricultural and open land surrounding the site. DOE expects to retain ownership and control of the site until at least 2095, and will continue to manage portions that cannot be released for unrestricted land use beyond 2095.
For more information:
Monsanto Chemical Co. (Soda Springs Plant)
The Monsanto Chemical Co. (Soda Springs Plant) Superfund site is located outside Soda Springs, Idaho. The 800-acre site includes the 540-acre Monsanto plant operating area as well as 260 acres of buffer area in which locally mined phosphate ore is processed to produce elemental phosphorus. In 1990, EPA listed the site on the Superfund program's National Priorities List (NPL) after the identification of contamination in groundwater and soils at the site. EPA required that Monsanto place restrictions on the buffer area. In 1998, Monsanto instituted land use controls on the buffer area. Monsanto took actions to control dust emissions from source piles contaminated with radium and is investigating other materials as potential sources to groundwater. Cadmium, selenium, nitrate and fluoride contaminate groundwater. In a recent review, groundwater monitoring indicated that natural attenuation may not be occurring for some of the contaminants and that the area of groundwater contamination is larger than originally defined. Groundwater monitoring continues, and EPA is in the process of determining the need for a new groundwater cleanup approach for the site. The site continues to operate, producing elemental phosphorus for multiple uses.
For more information:
Pacific Hide & Fur Recycling Co.
Pacific Hide & Fur Recycling Co.The 17-acre Pacific Hide & Fur Recycling Co. Superfund site is located in Pocatello, Idaho. From 1950 to 1983, the McCarty family owned and operated gravel mining and metal salvaging businesses at the site. Metals from site activities seeped into the soil, and in 1983 EPA found soil on site and in the surrounding area with high lead levels. EPA removed highly contaminated soils and added the site to the Superfund program's National Priorities (NPL) in 1984. Working with the owners, EPA led removal and treatment of soils contaminated with lead and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) throughout the site. EPA deleted the site from the NPL in 1999. Operations at the site continue under Pacific Steel and Recycling, Inc.
For more information: