Superfund Sites in Reuse in South Carolina
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Atlantic Phosphate Works
The 30-acre Atlantic Phosphate Works Superfund site is located in Charleston, South Carolina. Phosphate fertilizer manufacturing took place at the site from 1900 until 1943. Manufacturing operators produced sulfuric acid. Lead-insulated chambers held the acid. In the late 1990’s, investigators determined that site activities contaminated groundwater, soil and sediment with lead and arsenic. While ExxonMobil never owned or operated facilities at the site, the company accepted responsibility for site cleanup by way of a corporate merger in 1999. EPA’s 2004 cleanup removed, treated and capped contaminated soil and treated groundwater. Groundwater monitoring is ongoing. South Carolina Electric & Gas (SCE&G) currently operates the 100-megawatt Hagood Steam Plant at the site. The plant provides energy during periods of high electricity demand and storm emergencies. In 2008, SCE&G installed two new gas turbines at the plant.
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Calhoun Park Area
For more information:
- Reuse and the Benefit to Community: Calhoun Park Area Case Study (2014) (PDF) (17 pp, 1.8 MB, About PDF)
- News Release: EPA Announces the Excellence in Site Reuse Award at the Calhoun Park Area Site, Charleston County, South Carolina
- Superfund Site Profile Page
Carolawn, Inc.
The 60-acre Carolawn, Inc. Superfund site is located in Fort Lawn, South Carolina. Between 1970 and 1979, property owners operated a solvent waste storage facility and later, a waste storage, treatment and disposal facility at the site. The property owner abandoned the site in 1980. Leaking tanks, drums of hazardous waste and lagoons filled with sludge remained on the abandoned site. Investigations found that site activities contaminated soil and groundwater with hazardous chemicals. Between 1981 and 1982, EPA removed drums of hazardous waste and several tons of contaminated soil from the site. In 1983, EPA added the site to the Superfund program’s National Priorities List (NPL). Soil vapor extraction currently addresses remaining soil and groundwater contamination. In 1996, Circle S Ranch bought a portion of the site, as well as a nearby property, and built a large regional turkey feed mill. The mill supplies feed to area farmers. In the heart of South Carolina's turkey farm belt, turkey farming provides jobs and income to local residents.
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Geiger (C & M Oil)
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Golden Strip Septic Tank Service
The Golden Strip Septic Tank Superfund site is located on a 55-acre parcel near Simpsonville, South Carolina. An industrial/septic waste hauling and disposal service operated on the site from 1960 to 1975. During that time, wastes discharged into five lagoons on site, contaminating surrounding soils. In 1987, EPA added the site to the Superfund program’s National Priorities List (NPL). EPA's remedy, selected in 1991, included excavating and stabilizing contaminated soil and sludge in an on-site landfill. In 1996, parties capped the landfill with clean soil and a vegetative cover. In 1998, EPA removed the site from the NPL. Currently, restrictions in place limit land and groundwater use within the area. The Golden Strip YMCA purchased this property in 2002 and began redeveloping the site as a multi-use recreational complex. Reuse includes preserving green space and the former family farm structures as an interactive environmental education center. Current redevelopment also includes YMCA soccer fields, nature trails and an amphitheater.
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Helena Chemical Co. Landfill
The 13.5-acre Helena Chemical Co. Landfill Superfund site is located in Fairfax, South Carolina. Several companies operated pesticide formulation facilities at the site between the mid-1960’s and 1978. The Helena Chemical Company operated at the site between 1971 and 1978. Illegal dumping of pesticide residues and other wastes in an unpermitted on-site landfill contaminated groundwater, soil and sediment. EPA and the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control began investigating the site in 1985. Subsequently, EPA added the site to the Superfund program’s National Priorities List (NPL) in 1990. In 1993, cleanup activities began and workers removed contaminated soils and installed a groundwater treatment system. Groundwater treatment is ongoing. The Helena Chemical Company still owns the property and operates a retail sales outlet for agricultural fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides and seed at the site.
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Koppers Co., Inc. (Florence Plant)
The Koppers Co., Inc. (Florence Plant) Superfund site occupies 145 acres east of Florence, South Carolina. The Koppers Company operated a wood treatment and preserving facility at the site. Workers at the site disposed of process wastewater in unlined lagoons on site. In 1974, EPA ordered the company to control wastewater runoff after the Agency found that the company violated permit guidelines. The lagoons closed in 1979, but further investigations found contaminated groundwater and soil on site. EPA determined that the contamination posed a direct health threat to people using groundwater nearby. EPA added the site to the Superfund program’s National Priorities List (NPL) in 1984. The Koppers Company, with guidance from EPA and the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control, placed a cap over an on-site landfill in the late 1980s. Treatment of contaminated soil and groundwater is ongoing. EPA removed the site from the NPL in September 2013. The Koppers Company continues to operate wood-treating and preserving facilities at the site.
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Lexington County Landfill Area
For more information:
- Reuse and the Benefit to Community: Lexington County Landfill Case Study (2014) (PDF) (8 pp, 784 K, About PDF)
- Video: Lexington County Landfill Area: West Columbia’s Recreational Gem Exit
- Superfund Site Profile Page
Macalloy Corporation
For more information:
- Reuse and the Benefit to Community: Macalloy Corporation Case Study (2012) (PDF) (9 pp, 389 K, About PDF)
- Superfund Site Profile Page
Palmetto Wood Preserving
The 5-acre Palmetto Wood Preserving Superfund site is in Dixiana, South Carolina. Wood preserving operations lasted from 1963 to 1985. During this time, wood-treating solution chemicals spilled, leading to soil and groundwater contamination. EPA listed the site on the Superfund program’s National Priorities List (NPL) in 1984. In 1986, EPA found contamination in surface water, sediments, soil and groundwater on site and in the surrounding area. EPA began cleanup work in 1988. Activities included cleaning up soil, installing a groundwater extraction and treatment system, and connecting a sewer line to the City of Cayce wastewater treatment plant. EPA also removed the original wood-preserving facility from the property. Groundwater cleanup is complete and EPA has removed the groundwater treatment building and associated piping. The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control continues groundwater monitoring. Currently, South Carolina Electric and Gas owns the northern portion of the site, which they use for equipment storage. Other portions of the site remain undeveloped. EPA will provide information to prospective purchasers and stakeholder interested in reusing these areas.
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Para-Chem Southern, Inc.
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Sangamo Weston, Inc/Twelve-Mile Creek/Lake Hartwell PCB Contamination
The Sangamo Weston, Inc./Twelve-Mile Creek/Lake Hartwell Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCB) Contamination Superfund site is located in Pickens, South Carolina. The 224-acre site includes the location of a former manufacturing plant, six waste disposal areas, and a portion of Twelve-Mile Creek and Lake Hartwell. Sangamo Weston, Inc. owned and operated a capacitor manufacturing plant on site from 1955 to 1987. Waste handling practices resulted in contamination on site. EPA added the site to the Superfund program’s National Priorities List (NPL) in 1990. Cleanup activities included removal and treatment of soil and groundwater; groundwater, fish tissue and sediment monitoring; fish consumption guidelines; and a fish advisory public education and awareness program. Fish advisories remain in effect for fish caught from Lake Hartwell and Twelve-Mile Creek. After completing cleanup activities, EPA deleted portions of the site from the NPL. In a merger, Sangamo Weston, Inc. became Schlumberger Technology Corporation, and donated part of the property to the City of Pickens in 1999. The City of Pickens redeveloped the area into a public recreation complex.
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Savannah River Site (USDOE)
The Savannah River (USDOE) Superfund site includes about 310 square miles of land along the Savannah River near Aiken, South Carolina. Originally constructed in the early 1950s, the site served as a nuclear weapons fabrication plant. The main buildings at the site contained reactors, chemical separation plants and waste management facilities. In 1981, the United States Department of Energy (USDOE) identified contamination on site. Studies revealed contaminated ground water, surface water, soils and former disposal areas. In 1988, nuclear materials production at the site ended. In November 1989, EPA added the site to the Superfund program’s National Priorities List (NPL). USDOE, with EPA and South Carolina as regulators, leads site investigations and cleanup activities. To date, USDOE has treated billions of gallons of ground water and removed over one million pounds of contaminants. USDOE contracts Savannah River Nuclear Solutions, LLC to manage the site. Savannah River Nuclear Solutions, LLC employs about 10,000 workers at the site. The Savannah River (USDOE) site is the first site in the nation to completely close nuclear weapons materials production reactors under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA). Additional remedial efforts continue at the site. The United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service manages about 90 percent of site property. This largely forested area also includes pine plantations. Industrial developments occupy the remaining 10 percent of the land. In 2008, Ameresco, Inc. developed a 20-megawatt biomass project at the site. The project provides steam and helps power general on-site operations. Site stakeholders are actively seeking to use site properties as they become available. The United States Department of Defense uses closed reactor areas and an area near the Savannah River for training. The Department of Homeland Security has used a former industrial area for research. Future options for reuse may include a solar farm.
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Townsend Saw Chain Co.
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