Superfund Sites in Reuse in Delaware
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Army Creek Landfill
Army Creek LandfillThe 50-acre Army Creek Landfill site is located in New Castle, Delaware. A vibrant wildlife area has replaced a municipal and industrial waste landfill that operated from 1960 to 1968. Filled to capacity with 2 million cubic yards of municipal refuse, the landfill contaminated soil, ground water, nearby Army Creek, and local water supply wells. After discovering the contamination in 1983, EPA added the site to the National Priorities List (NPL). Under EPA oversight, the site’s potentially responsible parties (PRPs) conducted cleanup activities, including the removal and off-site disposal of over 100 buried drums containing chemical wastes, construction of a multi-layer cap over the site, and installation of a water treatment facility. The PRPs completed construction activities for the cleanup in 1994. The water treatment facility treated an estimated 500,000 to 900,000 gallons of contaminated ground water per day until 2004, when ground water recovery operations at the site were discontinued. Collaboration among EPA, local natural resource trustees, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, and the Delaware Division of Fish and Wildlife led to the incorporation of a wildlife area into the design of the site’s multi-layer cap. Various grasses and vegetation planted at the site encourage migratory birds to feed on the land. Development of the wildlife area included the installation of bird boxes along the riparian wetlands of Army Creek to encourage nesting. EPA addressed flood problems in low-lying areas by modifying the slope and location of discharge pipes from the treatment facility sediment basins to create standing wetlands. The wetlands prevent erosion and surface water runoff and provide habitat for numerous species of plants and animals.
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Delaware City PVC Plant
The Delaware City PVC Plant Superfund site in New Castle County, Delaware, was built in 1966. A polyvinyl chloride (PVC) manufacturing plant continues to operate at the 200-acre site. Site operators dumped PVC waste into earthen lagoons and used another area of the property to bury off-grade PVC sludge. Waste disposal practices resulted in contamination of groundwater under the site. Local residents, businesses and farms use groundwater for drinking water and other purposes. EPA placed the site on the Superfund program’s National Priorities List (NPL) in 1983. Site cleanup included pumping and treating contaminated groundwater, removing off-grade materials and contaminated soil for off-site disposal, and properly capping the buried sludge pits. The groundwater treatment system began operating in 1991, resulting in a steady decrease in size of the original groundwater contaminant plume. Discovery of a second groundwater contamination plume required installing more extraction wells and piping in 2001. Cleanup also included connecting businesses and residences near the western portion of the site to the public water supply. The PVC manufacturing plant continues to operate on the site.
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Delaware Sand & Gravel Landfill
The 27-acre Delaware Sand & Gravel Landfill site in New Castle, Delaware, demonstrates industrial reuse of a former landfill. Between 1968 and 1976, the landfill on site accepted municipal and industrial wastes, including drums containing organic and inorganic chemicals. Leachate from the landfill area contaminated ground water. In 1983, EPA added the site to the National Priorities List (NPL). Cleanup at the site included the removal of waste drums, capping of waste disposal areas, bio-venting of contaminated soil, and pumping and treatment of contaminated ground water. Capping took place on a 16-acre portion of the site. EPA worked with the site owner to construct a special "wear-surface" cap over a 5-acre portion of the landfill in order to support reuse of the landfill area. The "wear surface" cap supports daily use as a storage area for heavy equipment. This area of the site operates as a storage area for impounded vehicles, propane tanks and salvage materials. The owner of the site property also maintains a private residence on site.
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Dover Gas Light Co.
From 1859 until 1948, the Dover Gas Light Company in Dover, Delaware, processed coal to produce gas for use in street lamps in Dover. Site operators buried process materials containing coal tar residues at the 23-acre Dover Gas Light Co. site, contaminating soil and ground water. In 1989, EPA placed the site on the National Priorities List (NPL). The site’s potentially responsible parties (PRPs) have conducted cleanup activities under the oversight of EPA and the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control since 1989. These activities include removing and treating contaminated soil, treating contaminated ground water and constructing a cap over the site. Today, the cap over the 1-acre site serves as a paved parking lot for the adjacent Victrola Museum. EPA conducted additional ground water investigations at the site between 2005 and 2013. In April 2015, EPA began the feasibility study process to develop a remedy to address remaining groundwater contamination.
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E.I. Du Pont De Nemours & Co., Inc. (Newport Pigment Plant Landfill)
E.I. Du Pont De Nemours & Co., Inc. (Newport Pigment Plant)The E.I. Du Pont De Nemours & Co., Inc. (Newport Pigment Plant Landfill) Superfund site in Newport, Delaware, consists of a pigment-manufacturing plant and two industrial landfills. The Christina River flows between the 7-acre north landfill and the 15-acre south landfill. From 1902 to 1929, the plant manufactured Lithopone, a white, zinc- and barium-based pigment. In 1929, DuPont bought the plant and phased out production of Lithopone in favor of other pigments and dyes. DuPont also produced other products on the site, including chromium dioxide. Site operators disposed of metal-laden wastes in the on-site landfills. These activities contaminated groundwater and soil, as well as adjacent wetlands and the Christina River. In 1990, EPA added the site to the Superfund program’s National Priorities List (NPL). EPA selected a cleanup plan to address site contamination while also allowing the plant to remain in operation. DuPont conducted cleanup activities under the oversight of EPA and Delaware’s Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control. Cleanup included removing contaminated soil and sediment, and installing a municipal water line for nearby residents affected by contaminated groundwater. DuPont completed cleanup in 2002. Operation and maintenance activities are ongoing. Today, restored wetlands provide valuable ecological habitat at the site and much of the property is in reuse or continued use. The BASF Corporation, formerly Ciba-Geigy, owns the pigment plant and continues to operate as a pigment manufacturing facility. The company employs approximately 600 workers. DuPont continues to operate the chromium dioxide manufacturing plant on the site. The state purchased part of the south landfill to use in a highway construction project. Tangent Energy also worked with DuPont and Greenwood Energy to redevelop a portion of the site as a solar farm. DuPont hosted a ceremony in December 2013 to celebrate the start of operations at the 5-acre solar installation. The 548-kilowatt solar farm generates about 729,000 kilowatt hours of energy each year, which is enough to power 60 homes. The solar farm reduces Newport’s greenhouse gas emissions by 350 tons per year.
For more information:
- Reuse and the Benefit to Community: E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co., Inc. (Newport Pigment Plant Landfill) Case Study (2014) (PDF) (7 pp, 499 K, About PDF)
- Superfund Site Profile Page
Halby Chemical Co.
The Halby Chemical Co. Superfund site includes 9 acres located in an industrial area of the Port of Wilmington in New Castle, Delaware. From 1948 until 1980, different owners operated a chemical manufacturing plant on approximately 3 acres of the site. Site operators discharged wastewater from the plant into an unlined lagoon. Wastewater then flowed through an adjacent tidal marsh, through the Lobdell Canal, and into the Christina River, contaminating sediments and groundwater. In 1986, EPA placed the site on the Superfund program’s National Priorities List (NPL). Site cleanup activities included treating contaminated soil on site and placing protective covers over all contaminated soil and sediment remaining on site. Cleanup also included filling degraded wetlands; creating new wetlands at an off-site location to make up for those lost; and restrictions to prevent installation of drinking water wells from near the site. Monitoring activities are ongoing to ensure the cleanup remains protective. Office buildings or warehouses housing at least two businesses continue to operate at the site.
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Harvey & Knott Drum, Inc.
The 20-acre Harvey & Knott Drum, Inc. Superfund site is located in Kirkwood, Delaware. From 1963 to 1969, Harvey & Knott Drum, Inc. operated an open dump and burning area on a portion of the site. The facility accepted sanitary, municipal and industrial wastes. Wastes included sludge, paint pigments and solvents. Site operators dumped wastes onto the ground or into trenches, left waste in drums, or buried waste at the site. These activities resulted in contaminated groundwater, surface water, soil and sediment. The surrounding area is densely populated, and the residents depend on private, shallow wells for water. EPA placed the site on the Superfund program’s National Priorities List (NPL) in 1983. The site’s potentially responsible parties conducted cleanup activities under EPA oversight. These activities included draining water from the on-site pond, removing and disposing of drums off site, removing contaminated soil and sediment, capping remaining contaminated soils, and installing a groundwater and surface water monitoring system. Groundwater monitoring and maintenance of the monitoring system and cap continue at the site. Currently, the site supports recreational purposes as a paintball game facility.
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NCR Corp. (Millsboro Plant)
The 140-acre NCR Corp. (Millsboro Plant) Superfund site is located in Millsboro, Delaware. From 1967 to 1980, National Cash Register (NCR) made cash registers and other electronic devices on a portion of the site. Wastes from plating operations discharged into on-site concrete lagoons. Site operators disposed of sludge that accumulated in the lagoons in a pit on site. In the early 1980s, First Omni Bank purchased a portion of the site and built a bank. From 1981 to 1983, under state oversight, NCR conducted site investigations, which identified groundwater contamination. In 1987, EPA placed the site on the Superfund program’s National Priorities List (NPL). A groundwater pump and treat system began operating at the site in 1988. First Omni Bank remained open during the cleanup process and continues its operations at the site today as M&T Bank.
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New Castle Spill
The 6-acre New Castle Spill Superfund site is located in New Castle, Delaware. Witco Chemical Company processed materials used to make plastic foam at the site. The company stored large quantities of chemical waste in drums at the site which also housed a historic trolley barn. A chemical spill led to severe contamination of the soil and groundwater. In 1983, EPA placed the site on the Superfund program’s National Priorities List (NPL). EPA worked with the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) to develop a cleanup plan and allow for reuse of the site. The City of New Castle provided an alternate water supply to residents affected by groundwater contamination. Witco, the site’s potentially responsible party, placed controls on groundwater use at the site and started monitoring groundwater. By 1996, groundwater contamination reached safe levels by natural processes and Witco ended groundwater monitoring. EPA deleted the site from the NPL in 1996, and Witco donated the site and historic trolley barn to the City of New Castle. The City invested over $700,000 to renovate the building and convert it to office space for the New Castle Public Works Department.
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Sealand Limited
The Sealand Limited Superfund site covers a 0.8-acre area in Middletown, Delaware. Sealand Limited and Oil Industry operated a creosote-manufacturing plant and a coal tar, gas tar and ink oil storage and recycling facility on the site for about one year, closing in 1983. Leaking tanks and drums at the site contaminated groundwater and soil. EPA added the site to the Superfund program’s National Priorities List (NPL) in 1990. EPA removed coal tar, waste oil drums and solid waste from the site. Following removal of waste oil storage tanks, EPA capped soil with one foot of clay and six inches of top soil. In 1997, EPA deleted the site from the NPL. Currently, a warehouse facility operates on site.
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Tybouts Corner Landfill
Tybouts Corner LandfillThe 47-acre Tybouts Corner Landfill Superfund site is located in New Castle, Delaware. Site cleanup activities restored natural habitat and native vegetation on land once covered with hazardous waste. A sand and gravel quarry operated at the site until 1968, when the New Castle Department of Public Works converted the site to a landfill. The landfill accepted municipal and household waste until 1971. The landfill waste contaminated groundwater at the site. Investigations discovered contamination in two drinking water wells. In response, EPA added the site to the Superfund program’s National Priorities List (NPL) in 1983. Under EPA oversight, the site’s potentially responsible parties (PRPs) conducted cleanup activities. The PRPs installed water lines to connect residents with affected wells to the public water supply. The PRPs also constructed a landfill cap, a groundwater extraction system, and a gas collection system. They discontinued groundwater extraction in 2007. The PRPs used wildflowers and native grasses to stabilize the ground and prevent erosion on the landfill cap. The area now provides natural habitat.
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