Superfund Sites in Reuse in Idaho
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Bunker Hill Mining & Metallurgical Complex
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.
For more information: