USA Waste of Virginia Landfill
(Formerly: Wheelabrator Landfill)
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On This Page
EPA ID:VAD000063669
Location:
3 Abrasive Avenue
Bedford, VA 24523
Property Area 12.626 acres
Congressional District: 5
Other Names:Wheelabrator Abrasivesl
FINAL UPDATE
Contacts
EPA Project Manager
Erich Weissbart, P.G.
Remedial Project Manager
Land and Chemicals Division
US EPA Region III
701 Mapes Road, Fort Meade, Maryland 20755
410 305-2779
weissbart.erich@epa.gov
Virginia DEQ Project Manager
Ms
Tara D. Mason
Corrective Action Project Manager
Office of Remediation Programs
Virginia Department of Environmental Quality
629 E. Main St. Richmond VA 23219
Phone: 804-698-4218
tara.mason@deq.virginia.gov
Bulletin Board
Site Status
Status
- The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) prepared a Statement of Basis (SB) and Administrative Record (AR) in May 2010 proposing a Final Remedy for the Wheelabrator Landfill, USA Waste of Virginia Landfills, Inc. The Statement of Basis was noticed on July 18, 2010. The DEQ issued its Final Decision regarding the facility on September 22, 2010 via permit modification approval stating that Corrective Action was Complete with Controls.
- The Final Remedy states that no further actions to remediate soil or groundwater are necessary to protect human health and the environment given current and reasonably anticipated future land use. The final remedy requires the facility to maintain certain property mechanisms known as Institutional Controls (ICs) and Engineering Controls (ECs) because waste with hazardous constituents will remain at the facility in the closed capped landfill. The ECs consist of maintenance of the landfill cap as well as groundwater monitoring, as required under the facility's existing Hazardous Waste Management Post-Closure Permit (Permit). Also, the facility is required to maintain as an IC the Deed Notice which is already in place with the Bedford County Circuit Clerk's Office, Deed Book 844, Page 767-768, identifying the location of the facility's closed landfill.
- These controls provide assurance that the landfill cap, as currently known and anticipated, will not be disturbed without additional investigation or work and prior notification to the DEQ, and that groundwater monitoring will continue until the end of the post-closure care period at the landfill. DEQ's decision represents "Corrective Action Complete with Controls" as described in EPA's "Final Guidance on Completion of Corrective Action Activities at RCRA Facilities", (68 FR 8757, February 25, 2003).
Background
- USA Waste of Virginia Landfills, Inc., Wheelabrator Landfill (Wheelabrator) is a 2.7 acre landfill located on approximately 12.626 acres of land approximately two miles northwest of the Town of Bedford, Bedford County, Virginia. An unnamed stream, a tributary to Little Otter River, is located along the eastern portion of the landfill site.
- Wheelabrator, currently owned by USA Waste of Virginia Landfills, Inc., was used for the disposal of furnace dust and furnace slag generated from secondary steel smelting operations conducted at the adjacent Wheelabrator Abrasives foundry. The foundry, located to the south of the landfill, melted scrap metal in an electric furnace to produce steel "shot". Furnace dust and furnace slag was disposed of in the landfill until 1985. The operational period for the Wheelabrator Landfill was from 1973 to 1985. The landfill, which operated for 16 years, was closed with waste in place on December 21, 1988.
- On September 29, 1992, the initial Hazardous Waste Management Post-Closure Permit (Permit) became effective until September 29, 2002. The Permit required the facility to implement compliance monitoring. On November 26, 2001 the Groundwater and Human Health Environmental Indicators were given a "yes" determination by the DEQ.
- On August 16, 2003, the Permit renewal became effective with an expiration date of August 16, 2013. The current Permit requires post-closure care, groundwater monitoring, and RCRA Corrective Action (CA), as necessary, for the closed landfill. The post-closure care period and groundwater monitoring for this site is to continue until December 21, 2018. A Deed Notice is in place identifying the location of the closed hazardous waste landfill.
- On April 20, 2004, the Solid Waste Management Unit (SWMU) Release Assessment Report was submitted identifying Pond #2 and Pond #3 as SWMUs. On September 26, 2006, the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) determined that no further action was required at Pond #2 and Pond #3.
- On September 29, 2008, the compliance period for the regulated unit ended and a modified compliance monitoring program was installed. The groundwater will be monitored for the remainder of the post-closure period, which ends December 21, 2018.>
Contaminants and Risks
- The primary contaminants of concern in the groundwater include arsenic, barium, cadmium, chromium, cyanide, lead, mercury, nickel, and silver.
Documents and Reports
- Some of the site’s key documents of interest are accessible below:
- Corrective Action Statement of Basis [7pp, 113 KB, About PDF]
- Corrective Action Long Term Stewardship Report - May 2016[ 8pp, 1.8 MB, About PDF]
- Environmental Indicator Determination - Human Exposures [6pp, 22 KB, About PDF]
- Environmental Indicator Determination - Groundwater [8pp, 24 KB, About PDF]
- All documents and reports regarding this facility also can be reviewed in person at these locations:
U.S. EPA Region III
Land & Chemicals Division - RCRA
1650 Arch Street-11th Floor
Philadelphia, PA 19103
(215) 814-3435
Call for an appointment.
- Submit a FOIA Request
Get instructions on how to submit a FOIA request. Additional fee for requests over 100 pages.
Photos, Maps and Diagrams
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USA Waste of Virginia Landfill | USA Waste of Virginia Landfill GeoSpatial PDF Map[PDF, 1400 KB, 1 page, About PDF] |
Click on a thumbnail to enlarge the photo or GeoSpatial PDF Map )
Reuse Information
-
The facility is under continued use.
Questions
- The EPA is dedicated to providing you with timely and accurate information about our work at this site. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact the VA DEQ Manager Tara Mason (804)-698-4218 or EPA Project Manager: Mr. Erich Weissbart: (410) 305-2779.