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Fact Sheet
June 2005
Community Meeting to Discuss Next Steps
River Valley Ground Water Contamination Site, North Platte, Nebraska
INTRODUCTION
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 7 will hold a community meeting to discuss the results of prior sampling and the next steps to be taken at the River Valley Ground Water Contamination Site in North Platte. The meeting will be held Thursday, July 7, 2005, at the North Platte City Council Chambers. EPA, Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality (NDEQ), Nebraska Health and Human Services (NHHS), and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) will be available to answer questions.
SUPERFUND PROGRAM
Congress established the Superfund program in 1980 in response to growing concerns over human health and environmental risks posed by hazardous waste sites. Superfund locates, investigates and cleans up hazardous waste sites.
SITE ACTIVITIES
EPA is conducting a Remedial Investigation (RI) to determine the source and the extent of volatile organic compound (VOC) contamination within ground water in North Platte. Phase I of the RI is complete and Phase II is planned to start in late July 2005.
During Phase I, EPA sampled private wells, municipal wells, surface water and indoor air, in addition to conducting borehole sampling in suspected source areas and in selected areas that would help define the extent of contamination.
EPA sends the results of laboratory testing to all residents who are sampled. For residents who have private wells with VOCs in excess of the EPA Safe Drinking Water Act maximum contaminant levels, EPA will work with the city, state, and the homeowner to determine the best strategy for preventing exposure to the contamination.
________________________________________
Community Meeting:
River Valley Ground Water
Contamination
EPA and NDEQ invite you to attend a
community meeting on the River Valley
Ground Water Contamination Site. Staff
members will discuss next steps, and
answer questions, one-on-one. The
meeting will be Thursday, July 7, 2005,
from 7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. at the:
City Council Chambers
211 W. 3rd Street
North Platte, Nebraska
For more information, contact:
Beckie Himes
Community Involvement Coordinator
1-800-223-0425
himes.beckie@epa.gov
SITE BACKGROUND
A Nebraska Department of Health public water supply sampling program (1988) initially detected VOC contamination in some of the 17 municipal wells that serve the city of North Platte. Since then, several VOCs have been identified in ground water samples collected during subsequent site investigations, including an EPA investigation in 2002. That investigation confirmed the detection of tetrachloroethene (PCE) in soil at one location, and indicated that the ground water had been impacted by VOC contamination beneath the site.
In June 2004, EPA‘s Removal Program conducted sampling as part of a removal assessment that looked for VOCs in private wells. EPA worked closely with the state of Nebraska and the city of North Platte to conduct this effort.
The area sampled covered most of the city of North Platte. Sample results showed most of the private drinking water wells were clear of any contamination. However, some wells showed high levels of VOCs. This area is generally north of 4th Street and east of Poplar Street extending out to the city limits on the north and east.
The chemicals present at the site include PCE, trichloroethene (TCE), and other VOCs. VOCs are carbon-containing compounds that evaporate easily from water into air at normal air temperatures. VOCs are contained in a wide variety of commercial, industrial and residential products including fuel oils, gasoline, solvents, cleaners and degreasers, paints, inks, dyes, refrigerants and pesticides.
EPA estimates that VOCs are found in one-fifth of the nation’s water supplies. When VOCs are spilled or improperly disposed of, a portion will evaporate, but some will soak into the ground.
In soil, VOCs can be carried deeper by rain, water or snow melt. If they reach the ground water table, they can persist for years. When these VOCs migrate underground to nearby wells, they can eventually end up in drinking water supplies.
CURRENT INVESTIGATIONS
Phase II of the RI is currently being planned. During Phase II, areas of contamination discovered in Phase I will be better defined in order to determine the source locations where contamination entered the ground water aquifer. Phase II activities will include additional private well and municipal well sampling, sewer line sampling, indoor air sampling, surface soil sampling, borehole sampling, and possibly tree coring.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
For more information on this Fact Sheet or the Site, please contact:
Beckie Himes
Community Involvement Coordinator
U.S. EPA
901 N. 5th Street
Kansas City, Kansas 66101
Phone: 913/551-7003 or
Toll free: 1-800-223-0425
himes.beckie@epa.gov
