State of Oregon: Department of Environmental Quality

This report shows data entered as of December 9, 2023 at 7:59:48 AM

This report contains site details, organized into the following sections: 1) Site Photos (appears only if the site has photos); 2) General Site Information; 3) Site Characteristics; 4) Substance Contamination Information; 5) Investigative, Remedial and Administrative Actions; and 6) Site Environmental Controls (i.e., institutional or engineering controls; appears only if DEQ has applied one or more such controls to the site). A key to certain acronyms and terms used in the report appears at the bottom of the page.

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Environmental Cleanup Site Information (ECSI) Database Site Summary Report - Details for Site ID 55, JH Baxter & Co. - Eugene

General Site Information

Site ID: 55

Site Name: JH Baxter & Co. - Eugene

CERCLIS No: 009032400

Address:

85 Baxter St. Eugene 97402

County: Lane

Region: Western

Other location information:

Investigation Status:

Listed on CRL or Inventory

Brownfield Site: No

NPL Site: No

Orphan Site: Yes

Study Area: No

Property:

Twnshp/Range/Sect: 17S , 4W , 27

Tax Lots: 100, 103

Latitude: 44.0627 deg.

Longitude: -123.1541 deg.

Site Size: 42.5 acres

Other Site Names:

Site Characteristics
General Site Description:
Site History:
Contamination Information:	(3/11/94 AL/SRS) 3 sources of contamination have been identified and include the runoff containment pond and associated land irrigation; the retort facilities; and the former burn pit.
Manner and Time of Release:	Operating practices, discharge to unlined pond, burning from 1945 to present.
Hazardous Substances/Waste Types:	PCP, creosote, arsenic, chromium, copper, dioxins/furans
Pathways:	Groundwater, soil, and surface water are contaminated. Contaminated storm water moves off-site (this is being addressed through DEQ stormwater discharge permit #101072). Sediments sampled from the on-site settling pond were found to be contaminated with copper, arsenic, PCP, and dioxins/furans.
Environmental/Health Threats:	Potential for exposure to contaminated soil and groundwater. Compounds found at the site are known or suspected carcinogens.
Status of Investigative or Remedial Action:	(3/11/94 AL/SRS) In 12/85, DEQ issued a NPDES permit for an on-site surface impoundment. Among other things, the permit required Baxter to initiate a groundwater monitoring program at the site. (To date, the company has completed 3 phases of a groundwater investigation. They have also submitted quarterly GW monitoring reports since 1986.) An administrative Consent Order for an RI became effective 8/7/89. The temporary discharge to the Eugene POTW continued through the 4th quarter. Carbon polishing units were added to the treatment system during 12/93 and discharge to surface water initiated during 1/94. Treated water meets the NPDES levels. Phase II RI on-site soil sampling was conducted during 1/94; quarterly water sampling was conducted during 2/94. Project issues: extent of groundwater, surface water, and soil contamination. (NMW/SRS 7/14/95) Surface water treatment system in design stage, for treatment of water before passing to city stormwater system. (8/95 NMW) FS Work Plan report submitted. (7/6/98 PSR/SRP) Progress continues toward completion of the RI/FS. Revisions to the Oregon Environmental Cleanup Laws and rules required additional data collection and analysis, temporarily delaying completion of the RI/FS. The primary remaining RI tasks include completion of the ecological risk assessment, determination of the presence and/or extent of off-site arsenic and PAH contamination in soil, revision of the human health risk assessment, and identification of "hot spots" of contamination. Following their completion, work on the FS will begin. Operation of the groundwater interim remedial action system (IRAM) initiated in 1/94 continues. 173 million gallons of groundwater containing approx. 730 lbs of PCP have been extracted and treated through June 1999. The PCP groundwater plume has been found to extend off-site to the west and northwest of the facility. A supplemental groundwater investigation was completed in Summer 2001 to determine the extent of this contamination. (4/25/02 PSR/SRS) The project schedule calls for completing the RI/FS by December 2002. (2/15/05 GCB) DEQ is working with JH Baxter to finalize the risk assessment and begin working on Remedial Action Objectives for the Feasibility Study. (9/11/07GCB) Baxter proposed an interm remedial action consisting of placing a soil cap over the eastern 11 acres of the site. DEQ recommends completing the interim action, pending closure of the public comment period on 9/30/07. (8/1/2018) Bryn Thoms is PM, currently in RDRA scope negotiations.
Data Sources:	Project file located in Eugene DEQ office.

Substance Contamination Information
Substance	Media Contaminated	Concentration Level	Date Recorded
ACENAPHTHENE	Groundwater	2,300 ppb
ARSENIC	Groundwater	0.18 ppm
CRESOLs	Groundwater	900 ppb
FLUORANTHENE	Groundwater	3,100 ppb
NAPHTHALENE	Groundwater	10,000 ppb
PENTACHLOROPHENOL	Groundwater	4,300 ppb
PHENANTHRENE	Groundwater	5,400 ppb
PYRENE	Groundwater	2,200 ppb

Investigative, Remedial and Administrative Actions
Action	Start Date	Compl. Date	Resp. Staff	Lead Pgm
REMEDIAL ACTION (Primary Action)	10/14/2019	05/08/2020	Susan Turnblom	CU
View Full Report Showing Action History

Site Environmental Controls
Control Description	Begin Date	End Date	Last Reviewed By	Last Review Date
Easement Equitable Servitude	11/17/2010		Geoff Brown	11/17/2010
	Comments: Deacribes ongoing requirements to maintain the engineered cap over the eastern 11 acres of the site (Tax Lot 103)
Cap, engineered	12/13/2007		Greg Aitken	08/28/2014
	Comments: Engineered cap over the eastern 11 acres of the site (Tax Lot 103).

Key to Certain Acronyms and Terms in this Report:

CERCLIS No.: The U.S. EPA's Hazardous Waste Site identification number, shown only if EPA has been involved at the site.
Region: DEQ divides the state into three regions, Eastern, Northwest, and Western; the regional office shown is responsible for site investigation/cleanup.
NPL Site: Is this site on EPA's National Priority List (i.e., a federal Superfund site)? (Y/N).
Orphan Site: Has DEQ's Orphan Program been active at this site? (Y/N). The Orphan Program uses state funds to clean up high-priority sites where owners and operators responsible for the contamination are absent, or are unable or unwilling to use their own resources for cleanup.
Study Area: Is this site a Study Area? (Y/N). Study Areas are groupings of individual ECSI sites that may be contributing to a larger, area-wide problem. ECSI assigns unique Site ID numbers to both individual sites and to Study Areas.
Pathways: A description of human or environmental resources that site contamination could affect.
Lead Pgm: This column refers to the Cleanup Program affiliation of the DEQ employee responsible for the action shown. SAS or SAP = Site Assessment; VCS or VCP = Voluntary Cleanup; ICP = Independent Cleanup; SRS or SRP = Site Response (enforcement cleanup); ORP = Orphan Program.

You may be able to obtain more information about this site by contacting Susan Turnblom at the Western regional office or via email at susan.turnblom@deq.oregon.gov. If this does not work, you may contact Ximena Cruz Cuevas (503) 229-6811, or via email at ximena.cruzcuevas@deq.state.or.us or contact the Western regional office.