Time Critical Removal Action
1.1.2 Site Description
Region 4 ERRB received a request from North Carolina Department of Environmental Natural Resources (NC DENR) to perform a Removal Site Evaluation (RSE) at the Ulah Battery Dump along Dinah Road in Asheboro, Randolph County, North Carolina. NC DENR performed an assessment of the site indicating lead concentrations up to 35,600 parts per million (ppm) in some areas. This exceeds EPA residential Removal Action Level (RAL) of 400 ppm for lead.
1.1.2.1 Location
Dinah Road, Asheboro, North Carolina 27203
1.1.2.2 Description of Threat
Lead and arsenic are present from battery cracking operations formerly done by lead reclaimers along Dinah Road. The facility was reportedly in operation from 1965 to 1985. Operations included hundreds of batteries being broken to remove the lead plates and further melted in drums to be recycled to local vendors. Battery acid was reportedly allowed to spill onto the ground.
EPA and Superfund Technical Assessment Response Team (START) conducted a site assessment on 04/01/2010 revealing XRF detections up to 59,700 ppm lead and up to 3,735 for arsenic. The Site is a wooded area behind 159 Dinah Road and bordered by a private gravel road, Stella Trail. Battery chips and casings were found to be scattered throughout the property but concentrated in a bermed area along the southern edge adjacent to the private road.
1.1.3 Preliminary Removal Assessment/Removal Site Inspection Results
During the week of July 18th, EPA conducted additional XRF analysis of the property at 159 Dinah Road. This parcel is approximately 140 feet by 280 feet and the front and back yards adjoing the wooded area in the southern half of the property were subdivided into several managable grids for XRF investigation. In this manner, EPA and Start found that lead levels in two grids of the front yard ranged from 400 - 1450 ppm lead, and four grids behind the home levels ranged from 397 - 2890 ppm. In addition, two grids in the back yard indicated elevated arsenic levels over 100 ppm arsenic. The driveway leading to the back of the home indicted lead levels approaching 3300 ppm lead.
To confirm these xrf readings, Start was tasked to collect ten samples for analytical analysis and the resulting analytical matched up well with the field results. XRF correlation ranged from 84.7 to 96.8%. As previously indicted, lead levels in the dump area along the southern perimeter of the site range from 41,000 to 59,000 ppm lead.