Fact Sheet
September 2005
Site Deleted from National Priorities List
Red Oak Landfill, Red Oak, Iowa
INTRODUCTION
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has deleted the Red Oak Landfill Superfund site from the National Priorities List. The site was added to the National Priorities List, or NPL, in 1989. The NPL is a list of hazardous waste sites in the country. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) concurs with this action. The Notice of Deletion was published in the Federal Register on July 26, 2005. A 30-day comment period followed.
BACKGROUND
The Red Oak Landfill Superfund site is located approximately 1.5 miles north-northwest of the Red Oak city limits in Montgomery County, Iowa. The site is bounded on the west by Parkwest Road and on the east by the East Nishnabotna River. Originally the site of a limestone quarry, the property was purchased by the City of Red Oak and operated as a landfill from 1962 to 1974. Hazardous materials found at the site include volatile organic compounds (VOCs), such as toluene and xylene, and heavy metals such as chromium, lead, and mercury.
The site was placed on the National Priorities List in March 1989. After completion of a remedial investigation and a feasibility study in 1992, EPA presented the preferred remedy to the public and signed a Record of Decision (ROD). Subsequently, EPA modified the ROD in a document known as an Explanation of Significant Differences. The selected remedy consists of installing a cap or cover on the landfill to limit water infiltration and prevent exposure through direct contact. The remedy also includes fencing the site, groundwater monitoring, taking measures for slope protection, and imposing deed restrictions on the property.
SITE ACTIVITIES
The site has been addressed through Federal, State, and potentially responsible parties’ actions. These actions included the following:
- Installation of an engineered cap over the surface of the landfill;
- Construction of diversion and drainage structures to manage runoff;
- Stabilization of the riverbank slope and re-vegetation of the slope;
- Fencing the perimeter to provide access control;
- Institutional controls to control future land use at the site; and
- Continued monitoring, operation and maintenance of the remedy.
DELETION ACTION
EPA and IDNR have determined that all appropriate actions under Superfund
have been completed. The clean-up actions at the site were successful
in preventing exposure to wastes and contaminated soils on the surface
of the site by the chosen remedy of capping.
Since hazardous substances were left on the site, five year reviews will
be conducted. The first five year review was conducted in 2002, and showed
that the remedy was protective of human health and the environment.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Additional information about the site and the deletion is available for
public review during normal business hours at the following locations:
Red Oak Public Library
2nd and Washington
Red Oak, Iowa
EPA Region 7
Records Center
901 N. 5th Street
Kansas City, Kansas
Iowa Department of Natural Resources
Henry A. Wallace Building
900 East Grand
Des Moines, Iowa
If you have questions about the site or the deletion, please contact:
Beckie Himes
Community Involvement Coordinator
EPA Region 7
Office of External Programs
901 North 5th Street
Kansas City, Kansas 66101
himes.beckie@epa.gov
913-551-7003
Robert Stewart
Project Manager
EPA Region 7
Superfund Division
901 North 5th Street
Kansas City, Kansas 66101
stewart.robert@epa.gov
913-551-7654
Toll free: 1-800-223-0425