Click here for an interactive Story Map that shows drum removal activities.
On September 5, 2018, Missouri Department of Natural Resources (MDNR) referred the Good Hope Road Drum site to EPA Region 7. MDNR personnel conducted a reconnaissance on April 17, 2018 of a property in rural Berger, Missouri and identified 86 55-gallon drums that had reportedly been in their present location for approximately 50 years. Many drums were weathered beyond proper identification and were observed to have escaping contents.
EPA conducted a removal site evaluation in November 2018 that identified the presence of hazardous substances, and a request for a time-critical removal action memo was approved on February 11, 2019.
EPA, ERRS, and START crews mobilized to the site on June 17, 2019 to begin the time critical removal action. By June 20, 2019, all drums and stained soils had been placed in 85-gallon overpack drums and securely staged near Good Hope Road. ERRS and a disposal subcontractor returned to the site to transport the waste to an "off-site" facility in El Dorado, Arkansas. Post-removal site controls were limited to reestablishment (i.e., reseeding) of grassy areas that had been impacted by heavy equipment during removal activities.
