Region 8
Superfund Program
National Information
Regional Information
Site Information
National Priorities List (NPL) History
Proposed Date
12/1/2000
Final Date
9/13/2001
Carpenter Snow Creek
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Site Type: Final NPL |
What's New?
Updated March 2011
EPA will conduct remedial design in 2011 for the Neihart cleanup action, working with each property owner to design yard-by-yard cleanup plans. A repository for disposal of contaminated soils will be selected and designed. A survey of historically and culturally important features in Neihart and the surrounding mining district also will be conducted. EPA anticipates that actual cleanup of Neihart and the Belt Creek tailings pile will begin in 2012 and will require two construction seasons to complete.
The pace of studies of the Carpenter and Snow creeks watersheds (water quality and sediment, waste volume estimates, ecological risk assessment, etc.) will increase over the next two to three years, as well, with sampling events scheduled for June 2011 and October 2011.
The 2009 Record of Decision (ROD), including appendices and figures, and the 2010 Sampling Activities Report (SAR), are all available at this publicly accessible FTP site.
Site Description
Fort Benton/Denton/Stanford area
The Carpenter Snow Creek site is located in Cascade County, near the town of Neihart, in the Little Belt Mountains southeast of Great Falls, Montana. The site is in an historic mining district, and due to the impact of mining activities, groundwater, soils and some streams are contaminated with heavy metals and arsenic.
The Carpenter Snow Creek Mining District (CSC District) Superfund site is located adjacent to and includes the town of Neihart. Mining began in the CSC District when prospectors from Barker discovered silver deposits near the future town of Neihart. The CSC District's mines primarily yielded silver, lead, and zinc ores. After 1883, only those mines with high grade silver ore continued to operate. Later during the period from 1915-1919, the use of the flotation process allowed the mining of lower grade silver ore. During the 1940s, lead and zinc were produced in large quantities for World War II. The CSC District has been largely inactive since the 1960s, although some mines have reported mine exploration and some sporadic production.
Site Risk
Approximately 96 abandoned mines have been identified in the Carpenter Snow Creek Mining District, and at least 21 of these have been identified as probable sources of contamination to surface water. There are documented impacts from mining waste to soil, surface water and stream sediments in Carpenter Creek, Snow Creek, and Belt Creek.
| Media Affected | Contaminants | Source of Contamination |
| groundwater, sediment, surface water, soils | lead and arsenic | mining activity |
In 2002 and 2003, EPA collected soil/mine waste, surface water sediment and groundwater samples in the town of Neihart (Neihart Operable Unit). Concentrations of lead and arsenic in soil were above screening levels in some residential yards and alleys. Contaminant levels in the surface water of Belt Creek as it flows through Neihart were not above drinking water standards or levels that EPA considers unhealthy for aquatic life. Contaminant levels in the sediment of Belt Creek as it flows through Neihart did not exceed levels considered safe for recreational use.
Cleanup Progress
EPA has sampled residential soils throughout Neihart. The northern part of Neihart shows higher levels of lead and arsenic in soils than the area south of the Community Center. In 2004, EPA conducted a cleanup of lead-contaminated soils near two historic mills within Neihart. A tailings pile along Belt Creek was capped and armored to prevent runoff or failure in floods. A human health risk assessment and draft feasibility study for Neihart were completed in 2005.
Community Involvement
EPA has conducted numerous public meetings to discuss the results of the sampling efforts, Institutional Controls and related cleanup matters. A fact sheet was mailed out describing the results. EPA will continue to send out fact sheets and hold public meetings as proposals for cleanup are being evaluated. EPA meets several times each year with the Cascade County Board of Health and Health Director.
Site Documents
You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to view some of the files on this page. See EPA's PDF page to learn more.
Note: Best way to open a very large file: right-click and save it to a folder.
2010 Sampling Activities Report (SAR), February 2011 (PDF, 171 pp, 253MB, located on the FTP site)
Record of Decision (ROD) text, appendices and figures, March 2009 (PDFs located on the FTP site; see individual files)
Revised Proposed Plan for Neihart Community Soils, December 2008 (PDF, 11 pp, 1.4MB)
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Public Comments on the Revised Proposed Plan
(PDF, 6 pp, 36K)
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Transcript of the Public Hearing for the Revised Proposed Plan, January 13, 2009 (PDF, 6 pp, 1.3MB)
Public Comments on the original Proposed Plan for Neihart Community Soils
(PDF, 13 pp, 126K)
– Transcript of the Public Hearing for the original Proposed Plan, November 30, 2008 (PDF, 3 pp, 14K)
– Transcript of the Public Hearing for the original Proposed Plan, October 25, 2008 (PDF, 13 pp, 64K)
Fact Sheets
EPA Issues A Revised Proposed Plan for Cleanup of Soils in Neihart, MT, December 2008 (PDF, 4 pp, 189K)
EPA Issues Its Proposed Plan for Cleanup of Soils in Neihart, MT, October 2006 (PDF, 2 pp, 264K)
EPA Project Update for Neihart, Montana, March 2005 (PDF, 2 pp, 307K)
Site Update: Carpenter Snow Creek Superfund Site, August 2004 (PDF, 2 pp, 123K)
EPA to Interview Neihart Residents and Property Owners in February, February 2004 (PDF, 2 pp, 80K)
Remedial Investigation Begins in Neihart in September 2003, August 2003 (PDF, 2 pp, 224K)
Additional Sampling Begins in Neihart in June 2003, June 2003 (PDF, 2 pp, 129K)
Soil Sampling Results and Plans for Additional Work in Neihart, March 2003 (PDF, 2 pp, 136K)
EPA to Conduct Sampling in Neihart, September 2002 (PDF, 2 pp, 102K)
Contacts
EPA
Roger Hoogerheide
Remedial Project Manager
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 8
Montana Office
Federal Building
10 West 15th Street, Suite 3200
Helena, MT 59626
406-457-5031
866-457-2690 (toll free)
hoogerheide.roger@epa.gov
Montana DEQ
Keith Large
State Project Officer
Montana Department of Environmental Quality
Remediation Division
1100 N. Last Chance Gulch
PO Box 200901
Helena, MT 59620-0901
406-841-5039
klarge@mt.gov
View Documents at:
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 8
Montana Office
Federal Building
10 West 15th Street, Suite 3200
Helena, MT 59626
406-457-5000
866-457-2690 (toll free)
Cascade County Health Department
115 4th Street South
Great Falls, MT 59401
406-454-6950
Belt Creek Ranger Station
c/o Neihart, Montana 59465
406-236-5309