EPA, N.C. DEQ and Multistate Trust to Hold Public Availability Sessions and Public Meeting about Kerr-McGee Superfund Site in Navassa. on June 20, 2017

NAVASSA (June 16, 2017) — Federal and state officials together with Multistate Trust representatives will hold public availability sessions and a public meeting on June 20, 2017, to answer questions about the former Kerr-McGee Chemical Corporation Superfund Site in Navassa, N.C., and to update residents about environmental investigations, cleanup options and technologies, and redevelopment planning activities.

• What:   Kerr-McGee Superfund Site in Navassa, N.C.
• When:  Tuesday, June 20, 2017
• Where: Navassa Community Center, 338 Main Street, Navassa, N.C.
• Who:    U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 4; N.C. Department of Environmental Quality (N.C. DEQ); Multistate Environmental Response Trust (Multistate Trust); N.C. Department of Health and Human Services (N.C. DHHS); Navassa Trustees Council

 

Public Availability Sessions

Three sessions:

• 9 a.m. to 11 a.m.
• 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.
• 5 p.m. to 6 p.m.

The Public Availability Sessions will provide an opportunity for community members to talk one-on-one with experts about Superfund Site-related concerns and ask questions about the environmental investigations, risk assessments, cleanup options and technologies, reuse planning, natural resource restoration, and other topics.

Representatives from the EPA, N.C. DEQ, the Multistate Trust, N.C. DHHS, and the Navassa Trustees Council will be available to answer questions and share information.

 

Public Meeting

6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

EPA, N.C. DEQ and the Multistate Trust representatives will update the public about the Superfund Site environmental investigations, cleanup options and technologies, and redevelopment planning activities.

Kerr-McGee Chemical Corporation and other companies used the 251-acre Site for creosote-based wood treating from 1936 to 1974. Kerr-McGee dismantled the wood-treatment buildings and facilities by 1980. In 2005, the Site was conveyed to Tronox, a Kerr-McGee spinoff that filed for bankruptcy protection in 2009. In 2011, the Multistate Trust acquired the Site as a court-appointed fiduciary in connection with the global settlement of the Tronox bankruptcy. The Multistate Trust is working with EPA and N.C. DEQ, its beneficiaries, on the investigation and remediation of the Site and the planning for Site redevelopment.

The Site is bounded to the east by the Brunswick River, to the south by Sturgeon Creek, to the west by a residential area, and to the north by a light industrial area with an active CSX rail line.

The soil, sediment and groundwater are contaminated by creosote-related contaminants. The groundwater generally flows south and southeast toward the marshes, Sturgeon Creek and the Brunswick River. Site contamination does not currently threaten people living and working near the Site.

Since the previous quarterly public meeting on March 14, 2017, the Multistate Trust has formed a Redevelopment Working Group (RWG) consisting of community members and leaders interested in the Site’s future reuse. The RWG is serving as a steering committee for the Kerr-McGee Navassa redevelopment planning activities.

The Availability Sessions and Public Meeting are being hosted by the EPA, N.C. DEQ, and the Multistate Trust.

For more information, visit the EPA website at https://cumulis.epa.gov/supercpad/cursites/csitinfo.cfm?id=0403028 or the Multistate Trust website at http://multi-trust.org/navassa-north-carolina.

EPA Administrator Pruitt has prioritized Superfund cleanup as part of his effort to refocus EPA on its intended mission.  Under his leadership, EPA will look for ways to streamline and improve the Superfund program, with a focus on identifying best practices with regional Superfund programs, reducing the amount of time between identification of contamination at a site and determination that a site is ready for reuse, encouraging private investment at sites during and after cleanup, and realigning incentives of all involved parties to foster faster cleanups.  In underscoring this renewed focus, Administrator Pruitt said, “I am making it a priority to ensure contaminated sites get cleaned up.  We will be more hands-on to ensure the proper oversight and attention to the Superfund program at the highest levels of the Agency, and to create consistency across states.”

On May 22, 2017 Administrator Pruitt announced a Superfund Task Force to provide recommendations for streamlining the Superfund program: https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/epa-announces-superfund-task-force