In October 2023, EPA collected soil samples from a property in Ironton, Missouri to determine if an environmental source of lead contamination exists. The property is connected to a municipal water source, so no drinking water samples were collected. Soil assessment at the property conformed with an EPA-approved Quality Assurance Project Plan and with the Superfund Lead-Contaminated Residential Sites Handbook. Sampling results via x-ray fluorescence spectrometer (XRF) and fixed laboratory analyses showed that numerous quadrants at the property contained lead-contaminated soils at concentrations greater than the EPA-established Removal Management Level (RML) of 200 parts per million (ppm).
A time-critical removal action was taken at the residence to remove soils and gravel above the RML up to 12 inches below ground surface (bgs). In areas where the depth of excavation was still above the RML at 12 inches bgs, a demarcation barrier was placed. Property restoration continued until a final closeout was conducted on August 8, 2024. This removal action is now complete.
The property in Ironton, Iron County, Missouri is located in a residential neighborhood. Iron County is located in the Lead Belt Region of Missouri. Although lead was not a primary commodity of the majority of mining occurrences near Ironton, the town is situated between the “Old” and “New” lead trends of southeast Missouri. Four National Priorities List sites related to contamination from lead mining are located immediately adjacent to Iron County including:
- Washington County Lead District (to the north)
- Big River Mine Tailings/St. Joe Minerals Corp. (to the northwest)
- Madison County Mines (to the east), and,
- Annapolis Lead Mine (to the south).
Missouri Highway 21 that traverses Ironton has served as a primary lead haul route for transporting ore and is part of responsible party-led Superfund removal action, named Viburnum Trend Lead Haul Roads – Operable Unit 00.
