Region 5 Superfund (SF)

U.S. EPA REGION 5
KALAMAZOO COUNTY
OSHTEMO TOWNSHIP

Congressional District # 06

K&L AVENUE LANDFILL

EPA ID# MID980506463
Last Updated: February, 2007

Site Description

The K & L Avenue Landfill is a former sanitary landfill, covering 87 acres in Oshtemo Township, Kalamazoo County, Michigan. The site served as a local garbage dump for the township from the 1960s until 1968 when it became the county sanitary landfill. Approximately five million cubic yards of solid waste were disposed of at the site. The landfill was closed in 1979, after contaminants were found in residential wells. Approximately 11,000 people live within three miles of the landfill. The area surrounding the site is rural and residential. The nearest residence is adjacent to the site. The landfill is located about 200 feet southwest of Bonnie Castle Lake and one mile east of Dustin Lake. Both bodies of water are used for recreation, including fishing. 

Site Responsibility

The site is being addressed through federal, state, county, and potentially responsible party (PRP) actions. 

Threats and Contaminants

Groundwater is contaminated with volatile organic compounds, phenols, and heavy metals. Soil in isolated areas shows low levels of polychlorinated biphenyl contamination. All affected water wells have been replaced with deeper wells that draw from the lower, uncontaminated aquifer or with city water lines. Therefore, the groundwater presently poses little or no immediate threat to public health. 

Cleanup Progress

In 1980 and 1981, the County of Kalamazoo either installed new wells or provided connections to a public water supply for residences affected by contaminants from the landfill. 

In 1990, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) completed an investigation to determine the type and extent of contamination at the site, and selected cleanup remedies. The selected remedies included: continued monitoring of groundwater, surface water, and air; deed restrictions to prevent the use of the shallow aquifer as a drinking water source; groundwater extraction and treatment; fencing of the site; deed restrictions to prevent the construction of buildings on the site or adjacent to the site; installation of a landfill cap; and installation and monitoring of gas vents throughout the landfill. 

The remedy selected in 1990 was put on hold, while the site was investigated by the PRPs under a Consent Decree to determine the feasibility of natural attenuation / bioremediation at the site. These studies evaluated whether bioremediation or natural attenuation, which uses naturally occurring organisms to address groundwater contamination, would be a more effective alternative. The PRPs expanded the studies to also investigate the potential for natural attenuation of the landfilled waste. 

Field work for this re-evaluation began in 1993. In 1999, additional homes were placed on municipal water supply by the PRPs after several wells in a subdivision near the site were found to be contaminated.  All affected homes were hooked up to municipal water, and a comprehensive groundwater monitoring program was initiated to detect any future contamination of wells.

A Record of Decision Amendment was signed in 2003 to address the need for additional homes to be hooked up to municipal water. The hookups were completed by the end of 2004.  The amendment also included a requirement for a municipal water service zone, or other institutional controls, within and around the area affected by the contamination.

On September 12, 2005 EPA amended the Record of Decision a second time, to replace the active groundwater pump and treat remedy with a monitored natural attenuation cleanup plan. The amendment also changed several design requirements for the landfill cap, and revised the boundaries of the municipal water service zone. The second amendment to the Consent Decree was lodged in federl court on July 23, 2007.

Construction of the landfill cap began in the fall of 2005 and the pre-final inspection was completed in October 2006. The Preliminary Close-out Report was signed on December 20, 2006. The final inspection took place in April 2007 and the Construction Completion Report was approved in June 2007. The landfill is currently in the Operation and Maintenance phase whereby the landfill components (landfill cap, storm water management system, passive gas vents, and perimeter gas monitoring probes) are routinely inspected and repairs made, if needed.  Groundwater is sampled semi-annually to monitor the degradation of contaminants in the groundwater. 

The first five-year review will be completed by August 2009.

Contacts

Remedial Project Manager, U.S. EPA
shari kolak (kolak.shari@epa.gov)
(312) 886-6151

Community Involvement Coordinator, U.S. EPA
bob paulson
(312) 886-0272

Aliases

K & L AVENUE LANDFILL
WEST KL LDFL
KALAMAZOO KL LDFL
KL LDFL
K & L LDFL

 

Site Profile Information

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