(Atlanta, Ga. October 11, 2011) The U.S.…
Next Steps
1. EPA will communicate to building
owners and the general public the results of indoor air quality and
outside soil vapor sampling that took place in mid-August 2011 as
soon as those results are available.
2. If warranted by the results of the
sampling data, EPA may undertake additional sampling and/or
mitigate exposure to contaminants through indoor air utilizing its
emergency response authority.
3. EPA will conduct groundwater
sampling and analysis of samples from the existing well network
during the week of October 24th.
4. EPA will hold a public availability
meeting on Thursday, November 3, from 5-7 p.m. at the Montgomery
Public Library located at 245 High Street to receive public input
and answer Site-related questions. According to a U.S. Geological
Survey (USGS) report released on September 12, 2011, disposal of
industrial wastewater by former printing operations into sumps,
floor drains, and sinks that drained into sewer and storm-water
systems are the likely cause of widespread groundwater
contamination in downtown Montgomery.
The groundwater contamination in the
area, dubbed the "Capital City Plume," was discovered in 1991, but
the disposal of the contaminated water likely took place from at
least the 1940s to 1970s. Previous investigations were unable to
identify the source of the contamination.
The current study, conducted by the
USGS' Alabama and South Carolina Water Science Centers, in
cooperation with Region 4 of the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency, collected information from 2008 to 2010 to investigate the
potential source area of contaminants detected in groundwater; the
pathway of the groundwater contamination; and the timeframe of when
the contaminants might have been released. Scientists collected
pore water from Cypress Creek using passive-diffusion bag samplers;
tissue samples from trees growing in areas in downtown Montgomery
characterized by groundwater contamination and from trees growing
along the Alabama River and Cypress Creek; and groundwater
samples.
Analysis of the samples taken, combined
with maps of historical land use since 1842, indicate that the
perchloroethylene (PCE) and trichloroethylene (TCE)-contaminated
shallow aquifer beneath the Capital City Plume site likely resulted
from past use and disposal of wastewater that contained chlorinated
solvents into the sewer and stormwater systems by former printing
operations that occupied multiple locations in downtown
Montgomery.
Results from the study also show that a
source of PCE and TCE still exists in the ground near an original
release area, providing a continual source of PCE and TCE to the
shallow and intermediate parts of the shallow aquifer beneath the
city.
For more information about the site,
please visit: https://www.epa.gov/aboutepa/about-epa-region-4-southeast