County eyes Superfund status for refinery:
Cascade County is expected to ask Gov. Brian Schweitzer to nominate the former Missouri River metals refinery in Black Eagle for the federal Superfund clean-up program, Commission Chairman Joe Briggs said.
Briggs and fellow commissioners Peggy Beltrone and Bill Salina will vote today on a resolution that, if approved, would petition Schweitzer to "formally and expeditiously" request that the Atlantic Richfield Co. refinery site be added to the EPA National Priorities Listing, otherwise known as the federal Superfund list.
The alternative is to have the state Department of Environmental Quality oversee a remediation plan, but Briggs said choosing that route would delay a solution.
"The DEQ does not have the resources, in our opinion, to proceed with it," Briggs said.
It is important to move quickly because a black cloud is hanging over the community of Black Eagle and won't be cleared until additional testing occurs, followed by any necessary clean-up, Briggs said.
"The faster that can be done, the better for Black Eagle," Briggs said.
The community of 1,200 residents sits immediately to the west of the former refinery.
The impact of a Superfund listing on property values is a concern, and residents have varying opinions on whether to proceed, said Jim Helgeson, a member of the Black Eagle Civic Club board of directors. The issue will be discussed at a Sept. 2 board meeting, he said.
Publicity about pollution, but not placing sites on the Superfund list, can cause declines in property values, but cleaning them up tends to restore values, according to the EPA.
Schweitzer spokesman Jayson O'Neill said the governor wants more information from the county and the community of Black Eagle. "We'll look at that before he makes any decision," O'Neill said. State officials have said previously a decision is expected sometime this month.
Plant operations ceased in 1980 and testing in 2003 found elevated levels of metals including arsenic and lead on the refinery site, in Missouri River sediments and surface water, and along a railroad bed.
Additional sampling in 2007 and 2008 of residential soils in nearby Black Eagle found elevated levels of arsenic, lead and cadmium in several of the 250 or so samples that were collected.
The concentrations didn't pose an immediate health threat requiring soil removal but EPA says more investigation of the refinery site, Missouri River and residential properties is warranted.
The plant had a 502-foot-tall plant stack which allowed contaminants to be aerially dispersed over a wide area in the vicinity of the facility, according to the EPA.
Cascade County is expected to ask Gov. Brian Schweitzer to nominate the former Missouri River metals refinery in Black Eagle for the federal Superfund clean-up program, Commission Chairman Joe Briggs said.
Briggs and fellow commissioners Peggy Beltrone and Bill Salina will vote today on a resolution that, if approved, would petition Schweitzer to "formally and expeditiously" request that the Atlantic Richfield Co. refinery site be added to the EPA National Priorities Listing, otherwise known as the federal Superfund list.
The alternative is to have the state Department of Environmental Quality oversee a remediation plan, but Briggs said choosing that route would delay a solution.
"The DEQ does not have the resources, in our opinion, to proceed with it," Briggs said.
It is important to move quickly because a black cloud is hanging over the community of Black Eagle and won't be cleared until additional testing occurs, followed by any necessary clean-up, Briggs said.
"The faster that can be done, the better for Black Eagle," Briggs said.
The community of 1,200 residents sits immediately to the west of the former refinery.
The impact of a Superfund listing on property values is a concern, and residents have varying opinions on whether to proceed, said Jim Helgeson, a member of the Black Eagle Civic Club board of directors. The issue will be discussed at a Sept. 2 board meeting, he said.
Publicity about pollution, but not placing sites on the Superfund list, can cause declines in property values, but cleaning them up tends to restore values, according to the EPA.
Schweitzer spokesman Jayson O'Neill said the governor wants more information from the county and the community of Black Eagle. "We'll look at that before he makes any decision," O'Neill said. State officials have said previously a decision is expected sometime this month.
Plant operations ceased in 1980 and testing in 2003 found elevated levels of metals including arsenic and lead on the refinery site, in Missouri River sediments and surface water, and along a railroad bed.
Additional sampling in 2007 and 2008 of residential soils in nearby Black Eagle found elevated levels of arsenic, lead and cadmium in several of the 250 or so samples that were collected.
The concentrations didn't pose an immediate health threat requiring soil removal but EPA says more investigation of the refinery site, Missouri River and residential properties is warranted.
The plant had a 502-foot-tall plant stack which allowed contaminants to be aerially dispersed over a wide area in the vicinity of the facility, according to the EPA.
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