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Ulah Battery Site

All POL/SITREP's for this site Ulah Battery Site
Asheboro, NC - EPA Region IV
POLREP #4
Removal Activities Continue 		Printer Friendly  |   PDF
 
U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
POLLUTION/SITUATION REPORT
Ulah Battery Site - Removal Polrep

EPA Emergency Response

UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
Region IV
Subject: POLREP #4
Removal Activities Continue
Ulah Battery Site

Asheboro, NC
Latitude: 35.6385953 Longitude: -79.8283982

To:
From: Perry Gaughan, OSC
Date: 9/7/2011
Reporting Period: 9/05/2011 through 9/11/2011

1. Introduction
  1.1 Background
   
Site Number: 04HV    Contract Number:  
D.O. Number:      Action Memo Date: 7/28/2011
Response Authority: CERCLA    Response Type: Time-Critical
Response Lead: EPA    Incident Category: Removal Action
NPL Status: Non NPL    Operable Unit:
Mobilization Date: 8/30/2011    Start Date: 8/31/2011
Demob Date:      Completion Date:  
CERCLIS ID: NCD981864614    RCRIS ID:
ERNS No.:    State Notification:
FPN#:    Reimbursable Account #:


1.1.1 Incident Category

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 contaminated soils are present from battery cracking operations previously done by lead reclaimers along Dinah Road in Asheboro, NC. The reclaimers operated from 1965 to 1985.  Hundreds of batteries were cracked to remove the lead plates and further melted in drums to be recycled to local vendors. Battery acid (sulfuric acid) was reportedly allowed to spill onto the ground. 

EPA and Superfund Technical Assessment Response Team (START) conducted a site assessment on April 1st, 2010 revealing x-ray flourescense (XRF) detections up to 59,700 ppm lead and up to 3,735 for arsenic.  The Site is a one-acre wooded parcel behind 159 Dinah Road and bordered by a private gravel road, Coy 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.
2. Current Activities
  2.1 Operations Section
    2.1.1 Narrative

Monday , Sept 5 through Saturday, September 10th, 2011

ERRs continued removing lead and arsenic contaminated soil from the western and southern property lines of the site. Contaminated soils were removed in six inch increments to achieve levels below EPA's residential clean up limit of 400 ppm lead. During these removal operations pockets of contaminated arsenic soils were also found and removed presumably where battery acid had pooled on the ground. ERRs have stockpiled 150 cubic yards of highly contaminated soils and casings (above 5000 ppm lead) for hazardous waste disposal. This pile was sampled for disposal profiling and disposal bids are currently being requested from vendors.

Heavy rains from Tropical Storm Lee delayed soil excavation on Tuesday, September 6th. Dust control measures continue to be used during all excavation operations and Start contractors are conducting air and dust monitoring during all phases of the removal. Start has also been tasked to assess neighboring properties to identify lead and arsenic contamination.

2.1.2 Response Actions to Date

2.1.3 Enforcement Activities, Identity of Potentially Responsible Parties (PRPs)

2.1.4 Progress Metrics

Waste Stream Medium Quantity Manifest # Treatment Disposal
           
           
           



  2.2 Planning Section
   

2.2.1 Anticipated Activities

Removal activities are anticipated to take 6-7 weeks including the neighboring properties..

2.2.1.1 Planned Response Activities

2.2.1.2 Next Steps

2.2.2 Issues
  2.3 Logistics Section
    No information available at this time.
  2.4 Finance Section
    No information available at this time.
  2.5 Other Command Staff
    2.5.1 Safety Officer


2.6 Liaison Officer


2.7 Information Officer


2.7.1 Public Information Officer

2.7.2 Community Involvement Coordinator
3. Participating Entities
  No information available at this time.
4. Personnel On Site
  Errs Contractors 1-Response manager, 3 laborers, 1 equipment operator, 1 field cost accountant, and 
OSC
5. Definition of Terms
  No information available at this time.
6. Additional sources of information
  6.1 Internet location of additional information/report
Information collected from local residents indicates that several people in the Ulah area cracked batteries to reclaim lead during the 70's and early 80's. Mr Hoskins provided a copy of a license/permit from North Carolina essentially permitting him to operate a lead reclaiming operation.


6.2 Reporting Schedule
7. Situational Reference Materials
  No information available at this time.