November-December 2005 Update

South Minneapolis Neighborhood Site Update : Activities Continue Through Winter Months

Update No.1
Minneapolis, Minnesota
November - December 2005

Sampling Activities and Results

Since January 2004, U. S. Environmental Protection Agency has been involved in activities to clean up areas in the South Minneapolis Neighborhood Soil Contamination Site. EPA has sampled over 1,000 properties in the neighborhood. Results identified 60 properties with arsenic contamination in the soil above 95 parts per million. EPA has been removing soil contaminated above that level. Thirty of these properties were cleaned up in 2004 and spring 2005 and the remaining 30 are currently being cleaned up. Sampling results for approximately 227 properties showed arsenic levels to be between 10 and 95 ppm, which is slightly above levels normally found in soil. EPA is investigating what level within this range will prompt cleanups during the next phase. The rest of the properties sampled have levels less than 10 ppm, which is considered normal for soils in this area.Because the sampling has not shown any trends in the area, EPA is planning to sample a larger area. These plans will be made during the winter months.

During September, four schools and 13 day care facilities in the neighborhood were sampled for arsenic contamination and all results have been under normal levels.

Community outreach

EPA wants to keep the community informed and aware of what is happening in the South Minneapolis neighborhood regarding the arsenic contamination cleanup. Since January 2004, EPA has held two public information sessions, attended several local community meetings, produced two fact sheets, and interviewed approximately 30 residents, local city officials and other interested people. Over 600 letters in four languages (English, Spanish, Somali, and Hmong) were sent to residents whose properties were sampled during the summer.

EPA will continue to keep you informed through future updates like this one. To make sure that you receive information in the language of your choice, a language preference sheet is included in this mailing. Please complete this form and return it to EPA in the self-addressed, stamped envelope. If you do not have this envelope, you can mail the form to Cheryl Allen at the address listed on the other side of this update.

We are not done!

While sampling and other physical activities will shut down for the winter, there are still plenty of things happening. For example, EPA is:

putting plans together for additional sampling to be done in the spring;
working on developing the long-term cleanup standard for the area;
updating the information repositories with documents about the site;
producing additional updates to be mailed to residents; and
scheduling additional informational sessions.

Activities to date

Milestones
May 2001	Following an April 1999 report, the Agency for Toxic Substance and Disease Registry, in conjunction with the Minnesota Department of Health, provided a health consultation expressing concern about the possibility of highly contaminated dust being blown off the CMC Heartland Lite Yard Site and affecting the residential area to the northwest.
June 2001	Minnesota Department of Agriculture and MDH collected a limited number of soil samples from the residential area. Results warranted further study.
Sept. 2003	MDA collected additional soil samples.
Jan. 2004	MDA asked EPA for help on the residential area arsenic contamination.
May through Oct. 2004	EPA collected additional soil samples. These samples identified 30 properties with high arsenic concentrations.
Oct. through Dec. 2004	EPA workers dug up the soil from 29 of the properties identified with high arsenic contamination and took it to an EPA-approved landfill in Elk River, Minn., for disposal. Clean fill dirt was brought in to replace the contaminated soil.
May 2005	EPA cleaned up the one remaining property.
June through Aug. 2005	EPA sampled approximately 600 additional properties. These samples identified 30 more properties that required cleanup.
Sept. through Nov. 2005	EPA began cleaning up the additional 30 properties. Once again the soil was taken to the landfill in Elk River for disposal and clean fill dirt was brought in to replace the contaminated soil. This cleanup should be finished by the end of November.

For more information
For general and community-related information about the site, contact Cheryl Allen, EPA community involvement coordinator. For technical information, such as sampling and cleanup work, contact Tim Prendiville, EPA remedial project manager.

Contacts

Community Involvement Coordinator
Cheryl Allen
312-353-6196 or 800-621-8431, ext. 36196
allen.cheryl@epa.gov

Remedial Project Manager
Tim Prendiville
(312) 886-5122
prendiville.timothy@epa.gov

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