The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced on March 7 that it is adding five sites and proposing three sites be added to the Superfund National Priorities List (NPL). Three of the sites have groundwater contamination.
The NPL is a list of known sites throughout the United States and its territories where releases of hazardous substances, pollutants, or contaminants pose significant threats to human health and the environment. By adding this site to the NPL, the EPA can continue to assess the human health and environmental risks associated to the site and determine if remedial action is needed.
“Updating the National Priorities List is a critical component of EPA's comprehensive approach to protecting human health and the environment from contamination, including in communities overburdened by disproportionate environmental impacts,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “Cleaning up contaminated land and groundwater and returning them for productive use to communities, especially those which have borne the brunt of legacy pollution, is a win for public health and local economies.”
The EPA is adding these five Superfund sites to the National Priorities List:
- Acme Steel Coke Plant, Chicago, Illinois, EPA–HQ–OLEM–2023–0385: Wetlands contamination
- Exide Baton Rouge, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, EPA–HQ–OLEM–2023–0386: Groundwater, surface water and soil contamination
- Former Exide Technologies, Laureldale, Pennsylvania, EPA–HQ–OLEM–2023–0387: Soil contamination
- Lukachukai Mountains Mining District Cove, Navajo Nation, Arizona EPA–HQ–OLEM–2023–0041.Lot 46: Mine waste piles with radioactive materials, streams and wetland contamination
- Valley Gardens TCE, Des Moines, Iowa, EPA–HQ–OLEM–2023–0384: Groundwater contamination.
These are the three proposed sites:
- Afterthought Mine, Bella Vista, California, EPA–HQ–OLEM–2024–0066: Mine waste piles, surface water and wetland contamination
- Gelman Sciences Inc., Ann Arbor, Michigan, EPA–HQ–OLEM–2024–0067: Groundwater contamination
- Upper Columbia River, Washington, EPA–HQ–OLEM–2024–0068: Soil contamination.
The National Priorities List includes sites with the nation’s most serious uncontrolled or abandoned releases of contamination. This list serves as the basis for prioritizing the EPA Superfund cleanup funding and enforcement actions.