HEALTH CONSULTATION
MASON AND DIXON TANK LINES INCORPORATED
MARSHALL, CLARK COUNTY, ILLINOIS
BACKGROUND AND STATEMENT OF ISSUES
Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) requested that Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) staff evaluate the results of soil and groundwater samples collected at the Mason and Dixon Tank Lines, a Brownfields Redevelopment site, to determine if the on-site contaminants are endangering human health (1). The property is to undergo cleanup activities under the Illinois Brownfield Initiative and voluntary cleanup program.
The site is on the northwest side of Marshall, Illinois, in Clark County. This facility was formerly a tank truck washing operation for Mason and Dixon. Each tanker was washed, inside and out, using high pressure spray equipment. Operations at the site began in 1963 and ceased in 1983. Among various other substances, the tank trucks hauled chemicals for Velsicol Chemical Co., located in Marshall. Velsicol's primary product was chlordane.
The site is surrounded by a 6-foot-tall, chain linked fence topped with barbed wire. Two lockable gates are incorporated into the fence, but the gates are not locked. Nearby residential areas are approximately 20 feet east, 250 feet south, 400 feet west, and 450 feet north of the site. Site topography is flat with no discernable slope.
Thirty soil and 2 groundwater samples were collected from on-site locations (Attachment 1) on February 26 and 27, 1997. "Shallow" soil samples labeled with odd numbers (X101, X103, etc.) were collected from 0.5 feet to 2 feet below the ground surface. "Deep" samples, labeled with even numbers, were collected from a depth of 3.5 feet to 6.5 feet below the ground surface. Deep samples were taken from the same excavations used for the shallow samples (X102 was collected from the same excavation as X101, etc.). Aluminum was found in deep samples at a maximum concentration of 21,500 milligrams per kilogram (mg/kg). Chlordane was found in shallow samples at a maximum of 1,800 mg/kg.
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