The Site consists of the former Gretna Plating and Polishing  Company (GPP) that was established in 1980 and operated as a decorative chrome and nickel electroplating facility until August 2015 when it experienced a fire and ceased operations.  Following the 2015 fire, EPA responded to the incident and took measures to secure the Site.  See previous POLREPs for details for actions taken and additional details about GPP operations.  

The site features include:

• The former GPP operational area
• An area of undeveloped land

The GPP operational area encompasses an approximately 0.25 acres area and includes a 4,000 square feet (sqft) building and an adjacent 504 sqft building. The property’s east side is covered by pavement and the west side of the property as undeveloped land.  GPP utilized the building for its operations and consists of a prefabricated metal industrial manufacturing. The adjacent building was mainly used for storage and consists of a wooden barn type building. The main building is 40’x50’x12’ with a second floor loft designated for storage.

The site is located at 725 Carricox St., Gretna, Jefferson Parish, Louisiana within a residential area. The approximate center of the site is Latitude 29.932136˚ North and Longitude -90.047861˚ West.

The Site poses an imminent threat to public health and the environment, which is associated with the former GPP electroplating operations and current state of the facility. The threats include:

• Access to the Site was essentially unrestricted.
• The facility is in poor to failing condition due to the former electroplating operations, damage caused by the 2015 fire, lack of upkeep, and storm impact including Hurricane Ida in 2021.
• The property has been abandoned and facility/building has been condemned by the City of Gretna, LA. 
• The facility is located in very close proximity, less than 10 feet, to residential homes within a residential community.
• The site’s contaminants of concern are, but not limited to, heavy metals, bases, oxidizers, and other constituents associated with the electroplating process.

The assessment conducted following the 2015 response identified a release, as well as threat of release of hazardous substances, pollutants or contaminates at the GPP site as defined in Section 101(14) of CERCLA, 42 U.S.C. §9601(14) and 40 C.F.R. §302.4.

On March 14th, 2022, EPA and START mobilized to the GPP site to conduct soil and concrete sampling to identify potential traces of contamination from the hazardous materials that were used in the facility's operations. The sampling event concluded on March 16th, 2022, and the EPA team demobilized from the site. 

On March 14th, 2022, EPA and START met onsite with a sub-contracted driller to begin soil and concrete sampling for the GPP. A total of eight grids were mapped on the property with five-point composite samples to be extracted from three different depth intervals (0-6 inches, 6-12 inches, and 12-24 inches). All eight grids for the soil were completed.

On March 15th, 2022, operations resumed for collecting concrete core samples of the GPP site. A total of ten concrete core samples were extracted from the slab on the property. In addition, operations began for extracting soil samples for the neighboring property directly north of the GPP site. A total of six grids were mapped on the property with five-point composite samples to be extracted from three different depth intervals (0-6 inches, 6-12 inches, and 12-24 inches). 

On March 16th, 2022, operations resumed for extracting soil samples underneath the slab. Soil samples were collected at an interval of 0-6 inches underneath the concrete slab. In addition, soil samples were collected on the outer perimeter of the neighboring property directly north of the GPP site. A total of three grids were mapped on the outer perimeter with five-point composite samples to be extracted from a depth interval of 0-6 inches to avoid any impact on utility lines. Assessment activities were completed on March 16th, 2022, and the EPA team demobilized from the site. 

2.2.2 Issues
The facility is in a poor to failing state and is subject to tropical storms and hurricanes that could pose a potential threat to the neighboring residents.