Arizona Superfund Site: Apache Powder Co.
Fight Air Pollution & Water Pollution With an Environmental Toxic Tort Lawsuit

Do you need a Toxic Tort Attorney in The Grand Canyon State? The EPA has designated Apache Powder Co. in Arizona as a Superfund site because of its amounts of toxic pollution and harm to the natural world. You can read the report for the site below.

Some Superfund sites are on the National Priority Site Lists. The National Priorities List ("NPL") is the list of hazardous waste sites in the United States eligible for long-term remedial action financed under the federal Superfund program. Environmental Protection Agency regulations outline a formal process for assessing hazardous waste sites and placing them on the NPL. The NPL is intended primarily to guide the EPA in determining which sites warrant further investigation.

Sites are listed on the NPL upon completion of Hazard Ranking System (HRS) screening, public solicitation of comments about the proposed site, and after all comments have been addressed. EPA may delete a final NPL site if it determines that no further response is required to protect human health or the environment. Sites where a remediation was completed through the Superfund program are typically deleted from the NPL.

Living near Superfund Sites in Arizona may place you and the people you love at risk of getting sick from exposure to the site and experiencing a loss of value for your property, but there are steps you can take to fight back: The EPA says,

[We have] set up a "Post Construction Completion" (or PCC) strategy to ensure that Superfund response actions provide for the long-term protection of human health and the environment. EPA's Post Construction Completion activities also involve optimizing remedies to increase effectiveness and/or reduce cost without sacrificing long-term protection of human health and the environment.

Below you can read the EPA report for the Apache Powder Co. Superfund site. If you, a loved one, or someone in your community has suffered due to toxic pollution in Apache Powder Co., or if your property has lost value because of pollution, you will need a toxic tort attorney who knows the people of the State of Arizona . Learn more about your legal options by filling out this simple form. There is no obligation, and your case will be evaluated within one day. To refer a friend, neighbor, or loved one, click here to let them know about the environmental toxic tort attorneys at Weitz & Luxenberg.

Apache Powder Co.

This site is not a Federal Facility.

Updated: May 21, 2003

APACHE POWDER COMPANY
AZIZONA
EPA ID# AZD008399263

EPA Region 9
City: St. David
County: Cochise
Other Names: Apache Nitrogen Products, Inc.

Site Responsibility:

This site is being addressed through federal, state and potentially responsible parties' actions.

NPL LISTING HISTORY

Proposed Date:06/10/1986

Final Date:08/30/1990

Deleted Date:

Potential groundwater contamination problems were first identified by the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) in 1979 during the course of a surface impoundment assessment. Both the ADHS as well as the Southeast Arizona Governments Organization (SEAGO) conducted groundwater and surface water contamination sampling during the early 1980s to assess the level of nitrate contamination associated with ANP. In 1980, EPA found high levels of heavy metals (such as lead, chromium, zinc and strontium) in some of the on-site ponds. Ten shallow wells down-gradient from the facility were found to contain nitrate. Most notably, the sampling detected 470 mg/l nitrate in a domestic drinking well located north-west of the site. Additional site inspections were conducted by the ADHS in early 1986 to confirm these findings, whereupon ADHS instructed ANP to obtain a state groundwater protection permit to address source discharges. ANP however, continued to operate in violation of applicable state water quality regulations requiring a State Aquifer Protection Program (APP) permit during the period of 1988 through 1993.

In response to contamination concerns raised by the State, the EPA proposed listing the Apache Powder Site on the National Priorities List (NPL) in 1986. EPA then conducted a Preliminary Investigation (PI) of the ANP site which was completed in June 1988. The PI confirmed the State’s earlier findings of nitrate contamination. Additionally, the PI detected elevated levels of heavy metals in the sediments of on-site evaporation ponds and detected other soils contamination in the drum and storage area as well as in Wash 3. Apache Powder was placed on the NPL in 1990.

A Baseline Public Health Evaluation and Ecological Assessment was completed by the EPA for the Apache Powder site on September 22, 1992. The health evaluation process included: (1) the identification of contaminants from historical operations that were then present in groundwater, surface water, soils and sediments; (2) characterizing the population potentially exposed to these contaminants; and (3) evaluating the potential health effects resulting from exposure to contaminated groundwater, surface water, soil and sediments. EPA evaluated how individuals might be exposed to these contaminants under both current and future conditions as well as potential contaminant risks to natural resources.

Contaminants of Concern (COCs) found at the Apache Superfund site include: arsenic, fluoride and nitrate in the perched groundwater; nitrate in the shallow groundwater aquifer; arsenic, antimony, barium, beryllium, chromium, lead, manganese and nitrate in the Inactive Pond soils and sediments; as well as 2,4-DNT, 2,6-DNT and lead in Wash Area 3. Additionally, the waste materials vanadium pentoxide and paraffins were also found on site.

The primary human health risk posed by the Apache Powder site is the potential for direct ingestion of shallow aquifer groundwater contaminated by nitrate. Nitrate is the primary contaminant of concern due to the potential ingestion risk to infants which could result in methemoglobinemia. This condition, commonly referred to as “blue baby syndrome,” occurs when nitrate is absorbed into the bloodstream, resulting in the formation of methemoglobin which is not capable of carrying oxygen to the same extent that hemoglobin is. Because of a higher pH in their intestinal tracts, infants tend to be much more susceptible to this condition. Most cases of infant methemoglobinemia are associated with exposure to nitrate in drinking water used to prepare infants’ formula at concentrations greater than 20 parts per million (ppm).

While investigations proceeded and alternatives were reviewed for cleanup of the site, interim actions were taken to address potential threats to public health. In 1989, ANP began supplying bottled water to nearby residents with nitrate contaminated drinking water wells (wells with nitrate exceeding the federal drinking water standard). In November 1993, EPA requested that ANP submit a revised plan to install permanent replacement drinking water wells for those households with nitrate contamination exceeding the MCL. In February 1994, the contaminated shallow aquifer wells were resampled by ANP to establish current water quality data, and by October 1994, ANP had completed drilling for eight deep aquifer replacement wells. In March 1995, as required by the Record of Decision (ROD), eight households that had been on bottled water since 1989 were hooked up to deep aquifer replacement wells.

In June 1994, EPA released the Proposed Plan for five areas with groundwater and soils contamination due to historical practices at the facility. Concurrently, ADEQ addressed the company’s on-going manufacturing processes to reduce or eliminate the threat of future contamination. EPA’s selected remedy addresses the following five media areas: (1) Perched Groundwater, (2) Shallow Aquifer, (3) Inactive Pond Soils and Sediments, (4) White Waste Materials and Drum Storage Area, and (5) the Wash 3 area (excluding the Ash and Burn Area).

Based upon evaluation of the CERCLA requirements, the detailed analysis of the alternatives using the nine criteria and public comments, EPA determined in 1994 that the five selected alternatives were the most appropriate remedies for the Apache Powder site. The selected remedies identified were the cleanup of the nitrate contamination in the perched groundwater zone and the shallow aquifer and several different cleanup measures for the soils contamination.

EPA signed the Record of Decision (ROD) for the Apache Powder site in September 1994. Following the Proposed Plan, the ROD identified two separate groundwater areas for treatment: the perched groundwater zone and the shallow aquifer. The selected groundwater remedy components of the ROD consist of: (1) Pumping and treating the perched groundwater zone by forced evaporation (brine concentrator) in conjunction with treatment of the companies waste waters; ANP completed construction of the brine concentrator in January 1995; and (2) Pumping and treating the shallow aquifer by use of constructed wetlands and then recharging the treated water back into the shallow aquifer.

Cleanup actions to date include the removal of 262 drums (110 gallons each) and the excavation of 45 cubic yards of soil from Wash 3. This material has been stored on the site in a secured storage area. The selected remedy for the contaminated soils left on site will provide a permanent barrier to the contaminated soil and prevent rainwater from infiltrating the contaminated soils and carrying the contamination to groundwater. The selected remedy for the contaminated soils and drummed material selected for off-site treatment and disposal will permanently remove the contamination from the site and treat and dispose of the contamination at a permitted facility.

Construction of an innovative 4.5-acre constructed wetlands treatment system which treats 150 gallons per minute (80 million gallons per year) of contaminated water was completed in November 1997. This innovative technology has been well received both by the State and ANP for several reasons including: the realization of a cost savings of $15 million dollars over the use of other engineering technologies; lower long-term operations costs, maintenance costs and energy demands; and the enhancement of habitat for species in the vicinity of the San Pedro River, a valued state resource. A second wetland treatment system is under consideration and, as such, is scheduled to be completed by 2001.

EPA's selected remedy for the Apach Powder Superfund site is protective, meets Applicable and/or Relevant and Appropriate Requirements, is effective for the long-term and is permanent. The State of Arizona has concurred with
EPA’s selected remedies. Furthermore, due to several factors, including new technical data, more detailed analysis of design alternatives and suggested revised approaches proposed in 1996, the projected costs of cleanup have been reduced considerably from the estimated $21 million dollars presented in EPA’s July 1994 Proposed Plan. The current cost estimate is in the range of $10 million. This change is a result of greater than anticipated physical changes in the perched zone, development of the wetlands design alternative to combine treatment of the perched and shallow aquifer groundwater in the southeast corner of the facility, and the development of a phased implementation schedule which spreads EPA and ADEQ’s cleanup requirements over several years.

Preliminary discussions with with ANP concerning future cleanup efforts have resulted in the company proposing to EPA expediting the soils cleanup and streamlining the cleanup of groundwater contamination in the southern area of the facility in order to accomplish completion of remedial construction activities in 1999.

The public information repositories for the site are at the following locations:

Benson Public Library
302 South Huachuca
Benzon, AZ 85602
(520) 586-9535

The most complete collection of documents is the official EPA site file, maintained at the following location:

Superfund Records Center
Mail Stop SFD-7C
95 Hawthorne Street, Room 403
San Francisco, CA 94105
(415) 536-2000

Enter main lobby of 75 Hawthorne street, go to 4th floor of South Wing Annex.

EPA SITE MANAGER:

Andria Benner

ADDRESS:

PHONE NUMBER:

(415) 972-3189; (800) 231-3075

E-MAIL ADDRESS:

Benner.Andria@epa.gov

EPA COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT COORDINATOR:

Vicki Rosen

ADDRESS:

PHONE NUMBER:

(415) 972-3244; (800) 231-3075

E-MAIL ADDRESS:

Rosen.Vicki@epa.gov

PUBLIC INFORMATION CENTER:

(415) 947-8701

E-MAIL ADDRESS:

r9.info@epamail.epa.gov

STATE CONTACT:

ADDRESS:

PHONE NUMBER:

PRP CONTACT:

ADDRESS:

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COMMUNITY CONTACT:

ADDRESS:

PHONE NUMBER:

State Environmental Protection Agency

US Environmental Protection Agency

(800) 852-7550

(800) 424-8802

STATE:

AZ

CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT:

05

EPA ORGANIZATION:

SFD-7-1

• Site Description and History

•  Maps
•  Images

•  Description
•  Environmental Data

•  Response Action Status

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source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

Act Now! It is essential that you inquire about your pollutant lawsuit as soon as possible. Arizona law may limit your time to bring a legal claim to protect your rights. Your legal review is free and there is no commitment. You case will be evaluated immediately, so get started on your claim today!

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see also:

Apache Powder Co. Environmental Pollution in Arizona- Site: Apache Powder Co.
Apache Powder Co. Superfund Site Info - Fight Air Pollution, Water Pollution

Phoenix-Goodyear Airport Area Environmental Pollution in Arizona- Site: Phoenix-Goodyear Airport Area
Phoenix-Goodyear Airport Area Superfund Site Info - Fight Air Pollution, Water Pollution

AZ Environmental Pollution Lawsuit: Arizona Superfund Sites
Legal information for environmental pollution lawsuit in Arizona.