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Fact Sheet

July 2007

DocumentTitle

July 2007

EPA Announces Proposed Plan, FAR-MAR-CO Subsite, Hastings Ground Water Contamination Superfund Site, Hastings, Nebraska

INTRODUCTION

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announces the Proposed Plan for contaminated ground water cleanup at the FAR-MAR-CO Subsite of the Hastings Ground Water Contamination site. A public comment period will run July 9 - August 9, 2007. On July 18, 2007, a public meeting will be held at the Hastings Public Library, in order to give the public an opportunity to comment on the Proposed Plan.

EPA is the lead agency for the Hastings Site, and the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality (NDEQ) is the support agency. In consultation with NDEQ, EPA may modify the Preferred Alternative or select another response action based on new information or public comments. A final remedy will be selected after reviewing and considering all information submitted during the 30-day public comment period. The public is encouraged to review the Administrative Record for the site, which is located at the Hastings Public Library.

BACKGROUND

The FAR-MAR CO Subsite is one of the seven subsites that constitute the Hastings Ground Water Contamination Site.

The FAR-MAR-CO Subsite is located on the north side of Highway 6 on the eastern edge of Hastings. The Subsite covers about 70 acres in an industrial area which has been used for storage and handling of agricultural products for more than 50 years.

Morrison-Quirk owned the Subsite from 1953 to 1975. During this period, Morrison-Quirk used a liquid grain fumigant containing carbon tetrachloride (CT) and ethylene dibromide (EDB). FAR-MAR-CO, Inc. purchased the property in 1975. FAR-MAR-CO and its successor, Farmland Industries, also used grain fumigant CT and may have used EDB. The Subsite is currently operated by Cooperative Producers, Inc., as a grain storage facility.

An EPA ground water investigation at the Subsite in 1985 found both EDB and CT in on-site ground water at levels above the maximum contaminant levels. Other chlorinated solvents, including trichloroethylene (TCE), were also detected. A Remedial Investigation/Feasibility Study was started in 1992. An Engineering Evaluation/Cost Analysis was completed in 1995, and provided an analysis of the nature and extent of ground water contamination.

Around 1999, the city of Hastings extended a water supply line east of the Subsite and began providing city water to the affected users, eliminating potential human exposure through the public drinking water system.

SUMMARY OF REMEDIAL ALTERNATIVES

Remedial alternatives for OU 06 are -

The Preferred Alternative for the final remedy at OU 06 is Alternative 5. It could change in response to public comment or new information.

SCOPE AND ROLE OF THE ACTION

This action will be the final action for the Subsite. Source control actions were implemented at FAR-MAR-CO between 1990 and 2002, and the ground water removal action has successfully reduced contaminants in the ground water.

Because the Subsite is located within the Hastings Institutional Control Area (ICA), institutional controls (ICs) are in place and are being maintained. The ICs within the ICA include monitoring the wells, posting warning signs regarding the contamination, and providing alternate water to any resident whose private well is contaminated above health-based levels. In addition to these ICs, the city has enacted an ordinance which restricts the installation of wells within the ICA.

COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION

The dates for the public comment period, the date, location, and time of the public meeting, and the locations of the Administrative Record, are provided on the front page of the Proposed Plan.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR
Public Comment Period and Public Meeting

EPA and NDEQ will hold a public meeting Wednesday, July 18, 2007, from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., in order to give the public an opportunity to make comments on the Proposed Plan. The public meeting will be held at:

Hastings Public Library
Auditorium
4th and Denver streets
Hastings, NE

EPA should receive your comments no later than August 9, 2007. Comments should be mailed to the following address:

Beckie Himes
Community Involvement Coordinator
U.S. EPA Region 7
901 N. Fifth St.
Kansas City, KS 66101
E-mail: himes.beckie@epa.gov

If you have questions on the Proposed Plan, preferred alternative, or the site, please contact:

Beckie Himes
Community Involvement Coordinator
EPA, Region 7
Office of External Programs
901 N. Fifth St.
Kansas City, KS 66101
Phone: 913-551-7253
Toll free: (800) 223-0425
E-mail:himes.beckie@epa.gov

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