Region 8
Superfund Program
National Information
Regional Information
Site Information
National Priorities List (NPL) History
Proposed Date
5/11/2000
Final Date
12/1/2000
Lockwood Solvent Ground Water Plume
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Site Type: Final NPL City: Billings County: Yellowstone Street Address: Lockwood Road ZIP Code: 59101 EPA ID: MT0007623052 SSID: 08AK Site Aliases: Lockwood Solvent Congressional District: At Large |
What's New?
Updated December 2011
On September 28, 2011, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released the final health assessment for trichloroethene (TCE) to the Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS) database. IRIS is a human health assessment program that evaluates the latest science on chemicals in our environment. The final assessment characterizes the chemical as carcinogenic to humans and as a human noncancer health hazard. This assessment will also allow for a better understanding of the risks posed to communities from exposure to TCE in soil, water and air. It will provide federal, state, local and other policy makers with the latest scientific information to make decisions about cleanup and other actions to protect people's health. The new assessment is currently being evaluated by the Lockwood Solvent site team because TCE is a primary contaminant of concern at the site and can disperse as vapor into the indoor air of buildings. More information on IRIS: www.epa.gov/IRIS
On October 3, 2011, the consent decree for the remedial design/remedial action (RD/RA) was entered. The United States District Court for the District of Montana approved a settlement reached by the United States, the State of Montana and Soco West, Inc. for the cleanup of Operable Unit 2 (OU2). A remedial design work plan for Operable Unit 2 was submitted on October 25, 2011 and is currently undergoing agency review.
During November 2011 a Supplemental Sampling Program Quality Assurance Project Plan for the Beall Source Area (OU1) was approved and the Community Involvement Plan was finalized. Both documents are available in the Site Documents section below.
Site Description
The Lockwood Solvent Ground Water Plume site spans 580 acres on the outskirts of Billings, Montana. Much of the groundwater at the site is contaminated with the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) tetrachloroethene (PCE), trichloroethene (TCE), dichloroethene (DCE) and vinyl chloride (VC). These chemicals are hazardous to human health. (More information in the Integrated Risk Information System database: www.epa.gov/IRIS). The primary sources of contamination are from the Beall Trailers of Montana and Soco West (formerly Brenntag West Inc.) facilities. The VOCs leached from the grounds of the two facilities into groundwater serving as potable water for some of Lockwood’s residents. These VOCs can also disperse as vapor and enter the indoor air of buildings.
Site Risk
Groundwater at the site was found to have levels of PCE, TCE, DCE, and VC above the drinking water standard (the Safe Drinking Water Act Maximum Contaminant Level), which could pose long-term risks to public health and the environment.
| Media Affected | Contaminants | Source of Contamination |
| groundwater, surface water, sediment, soils | chlorinated solvents | bulk storage/cleaning operations |
In response to the imminent and substantial threat posed by the contaminated groundwater, EPA extended the public water supply system, which allowed residents to discontinue use of the contaminated groundwater. The municipal water supply currently provided to residents is safe and is regularly sampled to ensure it is within drinking water standards.
Cleanup Progress
The site was proposed for placement on the Superfund National Priorities List (NPL) in May 2000. The listing became final on December 1, 2000. Upon discovery of the health threat posed by the release, the Montana Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) supplied affected residents with bottled water until the EPA Emergency Response branch could extend the public water supply line to the area for potable water and domestic use. On August 16, 2005, following the completion of a remedial investigation and feasibility study (RI/FS), a Record of Decision (ROD) was signed by the MDEQ and EPA. The ROD identified Alternative 6 of the proposed plan, with slight modifications, as the appropriate remedy for the site. Alternative 6 was selected over the others because it was expected to meet all remedial action objectives and Applicable or Relevant and Appropriate Requirements within the shortest amount of time for the lowest cost. The treatment outlined in Alternative 6 would permanently destroy the contaminants of concern to reduce risk to concentrations below proposed remediation goals in all environmental media. Because it would treat both the source materials constituting the principal threats and the groundwater, the remedy would also meet the statutory preference for the selection of a remedy that involves treatment as a principal element.
Operable Unit 1 (OU1) is the Beall Source Area and Operable Unit 2 (OU2) is the Soco West Area. Both OUs were included in the 2005 ROD.
Major components of the ROD are as follows:
Site-Wide Elements
- Long-term groundwater monitoring.
- Five-year CERCLA reviews.
- Institutional controls.
- Controlled groundwater area.
- Deed notices/deed restrictions.
- Community awareness/education.
- Risk mitigation measures.
- Continued potable well(s) groundwater monitoring and mitigation measures.
- Indoor air monitoring and mitigation measures.
Beall Source Area Groundwater and Plume Leading Edge
- Treat with enhanced bioremediation.
Beall Source Area Soil
- Treat vadose soil with soil vapor extraction.
Brenntag Source Area Groundwater
- Contain and treat with a permeable reactive barrier (or other treatment/containment barrier technology determined by MDEQ and EPA during remedial design to be equally effective in achieving performance criteria as set forth in this Record of Decision).
- Treat with enhanced bioremediation.
Brenntag Source Area Soil
- Excavate accessible vadose-zone soil and accessible fine-grain saturated-zone soil and thermally treat on-site.
- Treat inaccessible vadose soil with soil vapor extraction.
- Treat inaccessible saturated zone soil with chemical oxidation.
Site-Wide Groundwater
- Treat with enhanced bioremediation followed by monitored natural attenuation.
Both EPA and the potentially responsible parties are in the process of planning field investigations to collect more site information needed for the remedial designs. These activities are planned to start during spring 2012.
Community Involvement
Community involvement plays an important role in the Superfund process. EPA uses a number of different tools and resources to promote effective, ongoing, meaningful community involvement. The goals of the Superfund community involvement program are to:
- Keep communities affected by sites informed throughout the cleanup process.
- Provide opportunities for communities to comment and offer their input about site cleanup plans.
- Facilitate the resolution of community issues tied to a site.
A Community Involvement Plan was prepared in 2001 and updated in November 2011. The plan provides a history of the site, a brief background and description of the community of Lockwood, and identifies issues of concern to the local community regarding the site. MDEQ and the EPA interviewed home and business owners and local government officials in the preparation of the Community Involvement Plan. The interviews provided community members and officials the opportunity to voice concerns and issues related to the Superfund site. In the Community Involvement Plan, EPA specifies objectives and future plans for community involvement and communication at the Lockwood site. For the Lockwood site, EPA plans fact sheets, news releases and focused meetings for community members. In addition, EPA will maintain an accurate mailing list for those interested in information about the site. If you would like to be on the mailing list, please contact the EPA Project Manager listed below. The 2011 Community Involvement Plan is available in the Site Documents section below.
Reuse
EPA places a high priority on land reuse as part of its Superfund response program mission. The agency tries to select cleanup options that encourage and support future use of a site. EPA uses two fundamental methods to facilitate reuse of Superfund sites:
- Exploring future uses before the cleanup remedy is implemented, an approach that gives the Agency the best chance of designing cleanup remedies to support the likely future use of a site.
- Working with landowners and communities to remove barriers not considered necessary for the protection of human health or the environment at those sites where remedies are already in place.
One option for reuse is the siting of clean and renewable energy projects on contaminated (or formerly contaminated) lands. As part of this effort, EPA is evaluating the potential for energy projects on these properties and working with landowners and communities to identify ways to remove barriers to such projects.
This site is in continued use as residential, commercial and light industrial. Examples of commercial and light industrial businesses in the area include trucking, vehicle repair, truck-tank manufacturing, chemical repackaging, machine shops and auto salvage.
Land Use Controls and Other Institutional Controls
Land use controls are the most common type of institutional control (IC). ICs are administrative or legal controls that help reduce the likelihood for human exposure to contamination. ICs can also help protect the integrity of the remedy. Examples of ICs are:
- Zoning ordinances.
- Environmental covenants.
- Deed notices.
- Well-drilling restrictions.
- Building permits.
- Informational advisories.
The 2005 Record of Decision selected groundwater use restrictions, deed notices/restrictions, and community awareness and education programs as the institutional controls for the site. Soco West is currently working with EPA to file a deed notice with the Clerk and Recorder’s Office of Yellowstone County, Montana, on the property it owns in OU2. In 2012, Soco West will also provide the supporting information needed to allow RiverStone Health to prepare a petition to the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation to establish a controlled groundwater area under Title 85, Chapter 2, Part 5 Montana Code Annotated.
Five-Year Reviews
EPA or the lead agency conducts five-year reviews following the start of a Superfund cleanup when contamination is left on the site. These reviews are repeated every five years. We use these reviews to determine:
- How the remedy is working.
- If the remedy remains protective of human health and the environment.
Five-year reviews are not yet required at this site.
Site Documents
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Community Involvement Plan, November 2011 (PDF, 36 pp, 621K)
Supplemental Sampling Program Quality Assurance Project Plan, Beall Source Area Operable Unit 1, October 24, 2011 (PDF, 253 pp, 6.4MB)
Remedial Design/Remedial Action Consent Decree, October 3, 2011 (PDF, 70 pp, 4.2MB)
Record of Decision, August 16, 2005 (PDF, 241 pp, 3.6MB)
Feasibility Study Report, July 6, 2004 (PDF, 175 pp, 587K)
Remedial Investigation Report, June 2003 (PDF, 249 pp, 634K)
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 in Montana)
hoogerheide.roger@epa.gov
Montana DEQ
John Podolinsky
Remedial Project Officer
Montana Department of Environmental Quality
1100 North Last Chance Gulch
P.O. Box 200901
Helena, MT 59620-0901
406- 841-5040
800-246-8198 (toll free in Montana)
jpodolinsky@mt.gov
View Documents at:
Montana State University – Billings
Library – Reference Section
1500 University Drive
Billings, MT 59101
406-657-2011
800-565-6782
EPA Montana Office
Superfund Records Center
Federal Building
10 West 15th Street, Suite 3200
Helena, MT 59626
406-457-5046
Monday-Friday 8 a.m.–4 p.m.
Photo/Video Gallery
Links
ATSDR Public Health Assessment, July 7, 2003
Montana Department of Environmental Quality, Remediation Division
Montana State University Billings Library