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CHARLESTON, W.Va. – The Office of Environmental Remediation (OER) at the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (WVDEP) has accepted a Voluntary Remediation Program application submitted by FMC Corporation to address environmental conditions at the Joseph and Elsie DeWeese Property in Kanawha County.
The site is currently residential property located at 110 Minor Avenue in Nitro and includes approximately 0.33 acres. The former Nitro Sanitation Landfill borders the DeWeese property to the south. The landfill was operated by the City of Nitro from 1965 to 1974 and was used primarily for disposal of municipal wastes. Disposal activities at the landfill extended onto the southern portion of the DeWeese property. During 2004, waste that had been placed on the DeWeese property was removed and relocated to the landfill. An engineered cap was installed on the landfill, which includes the paved area for the public access boat ramp located at Main and Lock Streets. The DeWeese property was backfilled with clean soil from off-site, covered with topsoil, and revegetated.
After potentially impacted soil was removed, 35 confirmation samples (including eight samples collected by WVDEP) were analyzed. Concentrations of all constituents were less than WVDEP de minimis residential soil standards except two pesticide compounds and two polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) compounds. Statistical analysis of the data showed that these results were outliers and not considered statistically significant. Arsenic concentrations were detected above the residential soil standard, but at concentrations less than the natural background level plus one standard deviation.
Following removal of all impacted soil and backfill with clean soil from off site, the DeWeese property meets the residential de minimis standard for all suspected contaminants. Additional cleanup is not proposed.
West Virginia’s Voluntary Remediation and Redevelopment Act encourages voluntary cleanups of contaminated sites, as well as redevelopment of abandoned and under-utilized properties, with an objective of counteracting the lack of development on sites with contamination or perceived contamination. By providing financial incentives to invest in brownfields, this approach protects communities and the environment while still promoting economic development in West Virginia.