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U.S. EPA REGION 5
MACOMB COUNTY
UTICA

Congressional District # 10

LIQUID DISPOSAL, INC.

EPA ID# MID067340711
Last Updated: April, 2008

Site Description

The seven-acre Liquid Disposal, Inc. (LDI) National Priorities List (NPL) site is located in Shelby Township in Macomb County, Michigan. LDI was a commercial liquid waste incineration facility which accepted wastes from major automobile manufacturers, chemical companies, and other industries around the state. Site facilities included an ash pit, scrubber and oil lagoons, surface and underground storage tanks, and an assortment of drums. Indiscriminate storage practices and spills led to soil and groundwater contamination with volatile organic compounds (VOCs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and numerous heavy metals, including barium, cadmium, and lead. The site is bordered on two sides by wetlands and the Clinton River and on the south side by an auto junkyard. The Rochester-Utica State Recreational Area and the Shadbush Tract Nature Study Area are within one mile of the site. Approximately 54,000 people live within three miles of the site; an estimated 3,500 people rely on groundwater for household use. 

Site Responsibility

This site is being addressed through federal, state, and potentially responsible parties' actions.

Threats and Contaminants

Soil and groundwater are contaminated with VOCs, PCBs, PAHs, and numerous heavy metals, including barium, cadmium, and lead.

Cleanup Progress

Between 1982 and 1986, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) in cooperation with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources removed lagoon wastes; contaminated sediments; approximately two million gallons of liquid waste; 2,800 cubic yards of heavy metal sludge; and 200 drums from the site. Between 1987 and 1991, six settlements resolved the liability of hundreds of small generators. In 1992, 35 major potentially responsible parties (PRPs) signed a Consent Decree (CD) with U.S. EPA for final cleanup of the site.  The PRP group has completed the following work: 

On September 4, 1997, U.S. EPA completed a final inspection at the site and determined that the PRPs had constructed the remedy in accordance with the Record of Decision (ROD) and Explanation of Significant Differences (ESD). On September 15, 1997, U.S. EPA documented in a Preliminary Close Out Report that all construction was completed at the site. The U.S. EPA has approved the final Operation and Maintenance (O & M) Plan and final Construction Completion Report.  A Five-year Review report was issued on February 23, 1998 and concluded that the remedy selected remains protective of human health and the environment.  A second Five-year Review was completed in 2003 and concluded that the remedy is expected to be fully protective of long term human health and the environment upon attainment of groundwater cleanup goals.  Although the CD requirement of a specific inward gradient from the extraction wells has not been achieved, natural processes are occurring with only two contaminants exceeding cleanup standards in water tested side and downgradient of the site.  Natural processes and groundwater extraction as well as continued groundwater monitoring and clay cap maintenance will continue to provide protectiveness to human health and the environment until the cleanup goals are met.  Changes to the O & M plan have been formulated to better monitor the contamination within the slurry wall.  The next Five-year Review is scheduled to be completed by September, 2008.

Contacts

Remedial Project Manager, U.S. EPA
linda kern (kern.linda@epa.gov)
(312) 886-7341

Community Involvement Coordinator, U.S. EPA
stuart hill
(312) 886-0689

Aliases

LDI
LIQUID WASTE DISPOSAL INC
LIQUID DISPOSAL INC

 

Site Profile Information

This profile provides you with information on EPA's cleanup progress at this Superfund site.

 

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