The Burley Products Terminal is a bulk fuel storage, distribution and pipeline facility located along State Highway 81 about four miles east of Burley, Cassia County, Idaho. The Terminal is comprised of three adjacent properties owned and operated separately by Tesoro West Coast Company, Chevron Pipeline Company, and Sinclair Oil Corporation.
Approximately 500 feet to the north of the Burley Products Terminal is the Snake River. In 1974, petroleum was observed seeping into the Snake River immediately to the north of the Terminal. Petroleum seeps to the Snake River were also reported in 1999 and 2000.
The Burley Terminal Operators have historically had significant on-site contamination of soils and groundwater at the Burley Products Terminal. Investigation of groundwater hydrology at the site indicates that the predominant direction for flow of groundwater is towards the Snake River. Petroleum compounds in groundwater and free phase product have been documented in both shallow and deep water bearing zones between the Terminal and the Snake River.
In October of 2001, the Burley Terminal Operators jointly entered into an Administrative Order on Consent with EPA to investigate and cleanup petroleum contamination causing discharge or threat of discharge to the Snake River. A combination soil-vapor extraction/air sparging system was installed has been in continuous operation in the western bench part of the site since January 2003, and in the eastern bench part of the site since August 2004, to remove petroleum contamination in upland soils and groundwater contributing to the seep. In November 2005, the Burley Terminal Operators conducted removal of contaminated sediments at former seep areas along the Snake River, at a time when the River level was lowered to expose most of the contaminated area.
