The Hartford Petroleum Plume Site is located within the northern most half of the Village of Hartford, Illinois just east of Illinois Route 3 and the Mississippi River. The plume footprint is bounded by Olive Street to the East, Rand Avenue to the North, Old St. Louis Road to the West and Hawthorne Street to the South.
According to the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA), several million gallons of petroleum hydrocarbon products including leaded gasoline were released over a 30+ year period. During late winter and early spring rainfall events in conjunction with rising Mississippi River stages, petroleum vapors invade into basements of residential homes sitting atop the subsurface plume. Hydrocarbon odor complaints have been documented by the IEPA since the mid-1960s. It has been further documented that house fires resulting from petroleum vapor intrusion have occurred in the past since the early 1970's.
Starting in 1953, additional buried pipelines were installed as to facilitate the movement of products between the river terminal and the refinery. In 1991, Clark Oil Company installed a soil vapor extraction (SVE) and free phase hydrocarbon (FPH)products recovery system. Until recently, the SVE system operated adequately to control vapor intrusion into residential homes in Hartford, Illinois. The free phase hydrocarbon recovery system is currently not operating. U. S. EPA will oversee project activities including operations and maintenance of the existing dual phase treatment system for hydrocarbons removed by the Performing Respondents identified in the Administrative Order by Consent, Docket No. V-W-03-C-XXX and the ultimate final remedies to be developed by the Agency.
The Hartford Petroleum Plume Site came to the U.S. EPA Removal Branch’s attention through the IEPA. IEPA has performed RCRA inspections and spill response support activities at the refinery since the 1970's. In June, 2003, IEPA deferred the Hartford Petroleum Plume Site to U.S. EPA. IEPA will continue to oversee activities within the refinery plant confines adjacent and just east of the Village of Hartford.
After a series of meetings with the respondents in the Summer of 2003, the EPA requested that a Work Plan be submitted to determine why the SVE system is not currently working to design performance standards.
