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Shuron, Inc.
National Information
Photos/Multimedia
Exterior of the former Shuron, Inc. plant.
Additional Resources
- Site Cleanup Terms - can be found in EPA's glossary
- EPA Guides to Cleanup Technologies
- Superfund Community Involvement (PDF) (17 pp, 130K, About PDF)
Site Summary Profile
EPA ID: SCD003357589
Location: Barnwell, Barnwell County, SC
Lat/Long: 33.236690, -081.375770
Congressional District: 02
NPL Status: Proposed: 06/17/96; Final: 12/23/96
Affected Media: Ground water, Soil, Surface Water
Cleanup Status: Construction Complete –Physical cleanup activities have been completed.
Human Exposure Under Control: Yes
Groundwater Migration Under Control: Yes
Sitewide Ready for Anticipated Use: No
Site Reuse/Redevelopment: Potential for Commercial/Light Industrial
Site Manager: Luis Flores (flores.luis@epa.gov)
Current Site Status
The Shuron, Inc. site includes the area where Textron, Inc. operated an eyeglass lens manufacturing facility from 1958 until 1992. EPA placed the site on the National Priorities List (NPL) in 1996 because of contaminated ground water, surface water, soil and sediment resulting from facility operations. EPA, the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (SCDHEC), and Textron, Inc., the site’s potentially responsible party (PRP) have investigated site conditions and taken steps to clean up the site in order to protect people and the environment from contamination. The PRP has addressed soil contamination at the site. Ground water treatment is ongoing. By cleaning up ground water, placing institutional controls on the site property and undertaking Five-Year Reviews, EPA, SCDHEC and the site’s PRP continue to protect people and the environment from site contamination.
Site Location and Background
The 85-acre site is located at 110 Clinton Street near Barnwell in Barnwell County, South Carolina. The site includes one fenced building, a 34-acre former manufacturing facility area which currently is a paved parking area, and the former locations of wastewater and solid waste ponds. The site also includes two wetland areas on the eastern and southern portions of the site. Residential properties border the site to the north, Turkey Creek borders the site to the east, a railroad right-of-way borders the site to the south and Clinton Street borders the site to the west. The site’s broader surroundings include low-income residential areas, commercial businesses and undeveloped, vacant properties.
From 1958 to 1992, Textron, Inc. operated an eyeglass lens manufacturing facility at the site. Operations produced single-vision and multi-vision glass ocular lenses and generated wastes, including grinding compounds, glass, polishing compounds, asbestos, hydraulic oils, motor oils and perchloroethylene sludge. In 1996, EPA listed the site on the NPL.
Currently, the site is vacant. The site can support commercial and industrial land uses.
Threats and Contaminants
Site investigations found contamination in ground water, surface water, soil and sediment that could potentially harm people in the area. Contamination resulted from waste disposal practices at the site. Contaminants of concern include volatile organic compounds (VOCs), lead, arsenic, zinc and copper.
Contamination affected on-site ground water as well as an area beneath a property south of the site. Institutional controls prohibit ground water use at the site. Therefore, ground water contamination does not pose a threat. EPA annually notifies the owner of the property south of the site about ground water contamination and the owner does not use ground water as a drinking water source.
Sampling in Turkey Creek has not detected any contamination.
Currently, vapor intrusion does not pose a threat to workers at the site because there are no buildings above the contaminated ground water. If construction occurs, EPA will assess whether workers might be at risk from harmful ground water vapors in buildings.
Investigation and Cleanup Responsibility / Oversight
Textron, Inc., the site’s PRP, leads site investigation and cleanup activities, with oversight provided by EPA and SCDHEC.
Site Cleanup Plan
In 1998, EPA issued a cleanup plan (a Record of Decision, or ROD) for the site. The plan included the following activities:
- Digging up contaminated soils and sediments for on-site treatment with solidification, stabilization and aeration or disposal at an off-site facility.
- Removing ground water from soil during removal of contaminated soil and sediment.
- Treating contaminated ground water.
- Collecting additional samples to determine the extent of contamination.
- Monitoring nearby municipal wells.
In 2010, EPA approved a cleanup plan amendment (a ROD Amendment) to further address ground water contamination. The amended cleanup plan for contaminated ground water included the following activities:
- Using chemical injections to increase naturally occurring bacteria to break down contamination.
- Placing institutional controls on the site property to prohibit ground water use, residential land uses at the site and digging in areas where contamination remains, to require a vapor intrusion assessment prior to use or construction of a building above the contaminated ground water, and to require annual notification of the property owner south of the site regarding ground water contamination.
- Monitoring and sampling ground water.
- Conducting Five-Year Reviews for the site.
Cleanup Progress
The site’s PRP removed contaminated soil and sediment in 2001 and 2002.
In 2010, the PRP completed the remedial design for the amended ground water cleanup plan and began cleanup activities. The design includes installing additional injection wells and ground water monitoring wells and using chemical injections to increase naturally occurring bacteria to break down contamination. In 2011, the PRP began installing additional injection and monitoring wells; the PRP also began injecting the aquifer and monitoring progress.
The site’s second Five-Year Review, completed in 2011, found that the cleanup will be protective of human health and the environment upon completion and that in the interim, threats are under control.
Summaries of cleanup activities are also available in Five-Year Reviews online.
Enforcement Activities
EPA negotiated legal agreements with the site’s PRP to investigate and clean up the site. The PRP continues to fund site cleanup, monitoring and oversight activities.
Community Involvement
EPA worked with the community and its state partner to develop a long-term cleanup plan for the site, reflecting the Agency’s commitment to safe, healthy communities and environmental protection. Community engagement and public outreach are core components of EPA program activities.
EPA has conducted a range of community involvement activities to solicit community input and to make sure the public remains informed about site activities throughout the cleanup process. Outreach efforts have included public notices, fact sheets and public meetings. EPA also mailed an Amended Proposed Plan fact sheet to community members within a one-mile radius of the site and held a public meeting in 2010 regarding the proposed changes to the cleanup activities for ground water.
Future Work
EPA is working to issue a Preliminary Close-Out Report to follow the completion of cleanup activities at the site.
EPA completed the last Five-Year Review in 2011 and plans to complete the next Five-Year Review in 2016.
Additional Information
EPA keeps additional site documents and information in a site information repository at the location below. EPA also posts site documents, when available, on EPA’s CERCLIS Site Profile page. For documents not available on the website, please contact the Region 4 Freedom of Information Office.
Site Repository
Barnwell County Public Library
40 Burr Street
Barnwell, SC 29812