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NPL Site Narrative for Times Beach Site
TIMES BEACH
Times Beach, Missouri
Federal Register Notice: September 8, 1983Conditions at listing (March 1983): The City of Times Beach (population 2,800) covers 8 square miles on the floodplain of the Meramec River in St. Louis County, Missouri. In 1972, and again in 1973, the City contracted with a waste oil hauler to spray oil on unpaved roads for dust control. It was later learned that the waste oil contained dioxin. In November and early December 1982, EPA sampled the roads and right-of-ways in Times Beach. Soon afterward, the Meramec River flooded the City. EPA expedited the sample analyses and found dioxin at levels from less than 1 part per billion (ppb) to 127 ppb. As a result, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) issued a health advisory on December 23, 1982, recommending that people relocated from Times Beach due to flooding should stay away, and that those remaining should leave. EPA resampled the area in January 1983 to determine if flood waters had deposited contaminated soil into homes and yards. In the second week of January, EPA allocated $500,000 to CDC to collect health questionnaires and examine the people of Times Beach. On February 22, 1983, EPA pledged $33 million from Superfund to purchase the Times Beach property under a relocation plan to be developed and implemented by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Status (July 1983): EPA is preparing a Remedial Action Master Plan outlining the investigations needed to determine the full extent of cleanup required at Times Beach. The next step is a feasibility study to identify alternatives for remedial action. CDC will continue its questionnaires and examinations and is also working with EPA to define cleanup levels for dioxin at Times Beach.
For more information about the hazardous substances identified in this narrative summary, including general information regarding the effects of exposure to these substances on human health, please see the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) ToxFAQs. ATSDR ToxFAQs can be found on the Internet at http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/toxfaq.html or by telephone at 1-888-42-ATSDR or 1-888-422-8737.