1. Introduction
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1.1 Background
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Site Number: |
C5N8 OU1 |
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Contract Number: |
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D.O. Number: |
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Action Memo Date: |
6/22/2015 |
Response Authority: |
CERCLA |
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Response Type: |
Time-Critical |
Response Lead: |
PRP |
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Incident Category: |
Removal Action |
NPL Status: |
Non NPL |
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Operable Unit: |
1 |
Mobilization Date: |
11/16/2015 |
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Start Date: |
11/16/2015 |
Demob Date: |
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Completion Date: |
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CERCLIS ID: |
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RCRIS ID: |
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ERNS No.: |
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State Notification: |
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FPN#: |
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Reimbursable Account #: |
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1.1.1 Incident Category
Time Critical Removal Action
1.1.2 Site Description
The
Site consists of an alley (owned by the City of Chicago) and a railroad spur
(historically operated by Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway [BNSF]) located
in the Lower West Side (Pilsen) area of Chicago, Cook County. The Site is in the City’s
25th Ward. The east to west portion of the
alley is approximately 460 feet (ft) long and 18 ft wide (approximately 8,280
square feet [ft2] in area) and is roughly paved with asphalt over
25% of its length from the east side. The north to south portion of the alley is
about 110 feet long. The remaining 75%
of the alley is soil. The alley connects South Loomis Street and South Throop Street and is south of West 21st
Street and north of West Cermak Road. The
alley is bordered to the north by H. Kramer and Company (H. Kramer) and Co., the east
by South Throop Street, to the south by commercial and industrial businesses,
and to the west by the railroad spur and then South Loomis Street.
The railroad spur is approximately 1,120 ft
long and 28,215 ft2 in total area. The railroad spur consists of an unused rail
track and soil
and asphalt where it is bisected by South Loomis Street. The
western portion of the railroad spur is located in the north region of a
property occupied by the Benito Juarez Community Academy (Juarez), located at
1450-1510 West Cermak Road. The railroad spur curves to the
south, crosses South Loomis Street, and extends along the west boundary of H.
Kramer, located at 1345 West 21st Street. The eastern portion of the
railroad spur is bordered by businesses along Loomis Street and West Cermak
Road to the south. According to a historical Sanborn fire insurance map, the
railroad spur and the alley have existed since at least 1914.
The alley and railroad spur soil (surface soil and subsurface soil) generally consists of silty, clayey, sandy, and gravelly fill materials. In the alley soil, some traces of wood chips, cinders, pieces of glass, brick, plastic debris, and slag were observed [slag was observed in eight alley soil borings and one railroad spur soil boring]. Slag is a solid-phase waste generated by secondary lead processing. In general, the surface and subsurface railroad soil contained more gravel than the alley soil. The western portion of the railroad spur west of Loomis street also contained vegetation (weeds) and garbage.
In addition to the information provided in the previous section. The geographical coordinates for the alley portion of the Site are 41° 51'
10.38" North latitude and 87° 39' 35.54" West longitude. The geographical coordinates for the railroad
portion of the Site are 41° 51' 13.58" North latitude and 87° 39'
41.66" West longitude. The Site is an industrial site in a residential neighborhood with a
portion of it (Western Area of the Railroad Spur west of Loomis Street) located
within a ¼-mile of two schools - Juarez and the Manuel Perez Jr. Elementary
School (Perez). Two City of Chicago
parks are located within a ½-mile-radius of the Site, Dvorak Park and Throop
Park.
1.1.2.2 Description of Threat
EPA Removal Site Assessment
analytical results document high levels of Lead in soil at or near the surface (which exceed the EPA Removal Management Level [RML] of 800 mg/kg for industrial use scenario). Access to the Alley is unrestricted and the fence in portions of the railroad spur is inadequate to prevent trespassers. The surface soil at the Site has the potential to migrate offsite via wind, rain, vehicular and
pedestrian traffic, or manual dispersion and presents a threat of exposure to the residents and workers in the surrounding area.
1.1.3 Preliminary Removal Assessment/Removal Site Inspection Results
EPA conducted a removal site assessment from Dec. 2012 to 2013 in the field and found that average alley surface soil total lead was 2419 mg/kg. Average railroad spur surface soil total lead was 4340 mg/kg. In addition to the high concentrations of total lead, two soil samples from the alley and one from the railroad spur collected from 0 to 6 inches bgs contained TCLP lead at concentrations exceeding the TCLP lead regulatory limit of 5.0 mg/L in 40 C.F.R. § 261.24(b).
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2. Current Activities
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2.1 Operations Section
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2.1.1 Narrative
Responsible Parties initiated
the cleanup at the Site on 11/16/2015. EPA OSC and EPA START oversaw the cleanup
onsite. The overall goal of the removal action is to remove
the threat of lead exposure to surrounding residents and workers from surface
soil through: 1) removal of soil contaminated with high levels of lead above
the EPA RML, and 2) placement of permanent covers at the Site.
2.1.2 Response Actions
to Date
The following are response actions from 12/14 to 12/30/2015. EPA OSC, START, and H. Kramer contractors [GHD (prime), RW Collins (subcontractor/soil excavation) are onsite. Response actions from 11/16 to 12/11/2015 are documented in the previous POLREPS #1,2,3, and 4.
The overall goals for the period were to: a) Complete the treatment, excavation, and disposal of the treated lead contaminated soil in Area 4 and 8; b) Complete gravel subgrade activities in Areas 4, 6, 7, and 8; These goals were largely achieved as described in the following work.
Areas 4 and 8 contained soil where TCLP lead (greater than 5 mg/l) were exceeded. A total of about 31.8 cubic yards of soil were excavated and successfully treated in Area 4. A total of about 73.2 cubic yards of soil were excavated and successfully treated in Area 8. These soils were treated with Free Flow Heavy Metals Treatment Regent which is a phosphate based material and is mixed at a 4% application rate to soil for TCLP lead treatment. The lab results for TCLP lead after treatment in Area 4 was 1.5 and 2.9 mg/L. Area 8 TCLP lead results after treatment was <.05mg/l (east pile) and 4.7 mg/L (west Pile). The results are all below below the 5 mg/L toxicity characteristic requirement and qualifies these soils for disposal as a solid waste. EPA split samples results for TCLP were comparable.
About 152 cubic yards of soil was excavated in Area 1 West (area north of the soccer field) to meet the cleanup goal. In addition, soil was excavated to meet the proper subgrade in Areas 2, 6, 7, 8, and Area 1 East. Overall about 600.1 cubic yards of lead contaminated soil was excavated and disposed of as solid waste (See Section 2.1.4 Progress Metrics). In addition to the aforementioned TLCP Lead treated soils (Areas 4 and 8), these soil soils were transported and disposed offsite at the Laraway RDF in Joliet, IL (IL ID 1970450002.). This landfill is currently acceptable to receive waste regulated by the CERCLA Off-site rule.
Subgrade preparations using gravel and some soil was completed in Areas 4, 6, 7, and most of 8. Typical subgrade preparations of soil excavation ranged from 6-9" below ground surface. As in all other areas, an orange geotextile cover was installed at the bottom of the excavations. Snow, ice, and standing water prevented completion of subgrade work in Area 8 and Area 5.
Throughout the reporting period GHD and EPA continued to conduct air monitoring with DataRAM 4 and DustTraks for dust in air. EPA monitored downwind with GHD (except for days with rain or snow). GHD had an additional monitoring location upwind with a DustTrak.
The average DataRAM 4 reading for the period was about 0.0291 mg/m3. No action levels (for dust) were exceeded.
Note: The action levels EPA START developed for the site are 0.812 mg/m3 for Areas 8 and 9, 1.19 mg/m3 for Areas 4, 5, 6, 7, and 10, and 3.19 mg/m3 for Areas 1 and 2.) GHD has a single action level of 0.480 mg/m3. The off-site dust particulate action level is any sustained downwind reading of 0.150 mg/m3 above background or the upwind reading.
2.1.3 Enforcement Activities, Identity of Potentially Responsible Parties (PRPs)
On 9/29/2015 EPA signed an Settlement Agreement and Order on Consent For Removal Action with the PRPs for the Site: H.Kramer and Company, City of Chicago, and BNSF Railway Company.
2.1.4 Progress Metrics
Pilsen Soil Ou1 Area Name
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Lead Contaminated Soil Excavated and Disposed
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Disposal Facility
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Comment
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Area 1
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175.3 cubic yards
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Laraway RDF, Waste Management (Joliet, IL)
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Excavated for grading and to meet cleanup goal.
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Area 2
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60.4 cubic yards
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Laraway RDF, Waste Management (Joliet, IL)
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Excavated for grading
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Area 4 (Treated for TCLP Lead)
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31.8 cubic yards
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Laraway RDF, Waste Management (Joliet, IL)
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Area 8 (Treated for TCLP Lead)
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73.2 cubic yards
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Laraway RDF, Waste Management (Joliet, IL)
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Area 8
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97.4 cubic yards
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Laraway RDF, Waste Management (Joliet, IL)
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Excavated for grading
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Area 6 & 7
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162 cubic yards
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Laraway RDF, Waste Management (Joliet, IL)
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Excavated for grading
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Total
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600.1 cubic yards
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Waste Stream |
Medium |
Quantity |
Manifest # |
Treatment |
Disposal
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Railroad ties (wood) |
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575 feet |
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disposal thru energy recovery, Staged BNSF Yard (Chicago) |
Rails (steel) |
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1150 feet |
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recycled. |
Solid waste (Garbage and Vegetation)
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38.8 tons |
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Shred-Al solid waste transfer station (Chicago)
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2.2 Planning Section
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2.2.1 Anticipated Activities
All Site work remaining requires working in warm non-winter conditions and all Site work has been completed for the winter. Response activities will resume again in April 2016 and will consist of repairs of the gravel subgrade, final subgrade construction, and asphalt capping work.
2.2.1.1 Planned Response Activities
- Maintain fencing and signage at the Site.
- Conduct monthly monitoring inspections to ensure no major damage to Site.
- Remove remaining wood rail ties in Area 2.
- Conduct inspection to determine scope of repair work.
- Complete subgrade work in Area 5 and Area 8.
- Install asphalt cover in Area 1 (east), Areas 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10.
-Coordinate with the City on all relevant issues.
2.2.1.2 Next Steps
In addition to the planned and anticipated activities, OSC will continue to work with EPA community to address concerns from the community and media as they come.
2.2.2 Issues
Weather conditions have halted work at the Site temporarily. Work to complete the job will start again in April 2016 (when the asphalt plants reopen).
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2.3 Logistics Section
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No information available at this time.
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2.4 Finance Section
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No information available at this time.
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2.5 Other Command Staff
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2.5.1 Safety Officer
Ramon Mendoza, EPA OSC,
Andy Krein, GHD
2.5.2 Liaison Officer
2.5.3 Information Officer and Community Relations
Philippa Cannon, EPA (PIO support)
Clarke, Rosita, EPA (Community Relation).
Leon, Heriberto, EPA
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3. Participating Entities
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3.1 Unified Command
None
3.2 Cooperating Agencies
City Department of Transportation
Alderman Solis Office (City of Chicago)
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4. Personnel On Site
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Pilsen
OU1 Removal – Personnel Counts
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Date
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BNSF
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Chicago Streets and Sanitation
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DF Rail Group
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EPA
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GHD
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Hygieneering
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RW Collins
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START
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W-T
Land Surveying Inc.
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12/14 to 30 /15
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5. Definition of Terms
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No information available at this time.
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6. Additional sources of information
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No information available at this time.
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7. Situational Reference Materials
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No information available at this time.
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