Air Quality
Drinking Water
Environmental Response and Remediation
Waste Management and Radiation Control
Water Quality
Executive Director’s Office
DWMRC works with companies through its Corrective Action Program to remediate environmental contamination from the improper storage, treatment, or disposal of solid or hazardous waste. Corrective Actions (CAs) ensure that facilities deal with these releases properly to minimize harm to the public and the environment. The Division’s collaborative efforts with businesses and developers on these cleanups lead to timely resolution of environmental issues and a faster return of contaminated lands to beneficial use. DWMRC also prepares Site Management Plans that allow facilities to continue operations while still protecting workers and environmental receptors from residual contamination on these sites.
Success Story: Liberty Boulevard
Development group Cowboy Properties approached DWMRC in late 2014 to discuss a property they were purchasing at 734 East 400 South in Salt Lake City, Utah. The property covered a little over three acres and consisted of eight contiguous parcels. Intercontinental Bakery/Hostess had operated a bakery in an 81,000 square-foot building on the site. Their operations also included distribution facilities and vehicle maintenance.
A series of subsurface investigations conducted on the property by Wasatch Environmental identified petroleum hydrocarbons and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the soil, groundwater, and sub-slab vapor samples. Widespread concentrations of tetrachloroethylene (PCE) above the federal Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs) were detected in groundwater samples. The PCE impacts to groundwater may be associated with historical releases from a former upgradient dry-cleaning facility.
Cowboy Properties requested Division review of the existing information and oversight of subsequent soil and groundwater sampling. During April and May 2016, the bakery was demolished and all associated structures were removed. Wasatch Environmental provided a report in late 2016 that supported a finding that no contamination existed on the property from bakery operations. Groundwater monitoring information confirmed the PCE contamination was migrating onto the property from the east. Based on this information, the Division informed Cowboy Properties that no further investigation or monitoring was required.
To mitigate the risks posed by PCE in the groundwater, DWMRC required an Environmental Covenant to be imposed on the property. The Environmental Covenant prohibits the extraction of groundwater for any purpose, including bathing and drinking. The Covenant was recorded on the property in June 2017.
With all environmental issues addressed, Liberty Boulevard Associates, LLC proceeded to construct a four-story building consisting of studio, one- and two-bedroom apartments. Parking and commercial business occupy the first floor. The completed structure is conveniently located next to the TRAX line stop on 400 South in Salt Lake City.
Success Story: Canyon Creek
Canyon Creek Commercial Center is located in Spanish Fork north of the Highway 6 junction with I-15 on the Spanish Fork Parkway. The Commercial Center proposed the removal of a portion of an old municipal solid-waste landfill located within the Expressway Lane Plume. The Expressway Lane Plume is an area with groundwater contaminated by chromium, lead, and arsenic.
Spanish Fork and the Canyon Creek Commercial Center Developer proposed relocating the southwestern portion of the landfill to accommodate a Lowes Hardware store in the development.
Dewatering of the excavation was required since the excavation was located within the Expressway Plume. Surface water was pumped from the excavation, filtered to remove possible metal contamination, and released to the local storm sewer.
To ensure that any old industrial toxic substances (car batteries, solvent drums, or other industrial wastes) were removed from the landfill waste, Wasatch Environmental performed oversight of waste relocation. This oversight was intended to prevent any possible spread of contamination. The old wastes were relocated to the top of the old landfill and recapped using clay soils from the removal area.
Construction began in late September 2018 and is projected to take approximately three months to complete.
Success Story: UTTR Landfill
The Utah Test and Training Range (UTTR) is operated by the Air Force as a bombing and gunnery range. Landfill 5 is located on the UTTR 70 miles west of Salt Lake City and covers five acres. The landfill contains seven disposal cells that accepted a variety of solid and hazardous wastes, including solvents, oils, heavy metals, PCBs, paints, paint strippers, Industrial Waterwater Treatment Plant (IWTP) sludge, sandblast media, beryllium brake pads, and asbestos prior to Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) land-disposal restrictions. These wastes were generated at the maintenance shops on Hill Air Force Base and deposited at the landfill from 1976 to 1983.
Each cell is approximately 90 feet wide, 150 feet long, and 15 feet deep. The landfill location was selected because it had low soil permeability and low annual precipitation and was remote. A low-permeability cap was installed over the landfill in 1989 to minimize movement of liquid waste from the landfill. The landfill operated under a Post Closure Permit and Closure Plan (1988) that required groundwater monitoring wells.
When contaminants were detected in the groundwater, the Air Force volunteered to remove the source of contamination — wastes in the landfill and vapors in the subsurface — to prevent the further spread of contamination. Due to the presence of both solid and gaseous wastes, remediation required a two-step process: empty the cells of contaminated material and install a system of vent wells to remove solvent vapors from the ground below the cells.
The Air Force excavated one cell at a time in the landfill beginning in the fall of 2017. After excavation, hazardous and solid wastes were profiled and sent off-site for disposal at a RCRA landfill. When necessary, waste and contaminated soils were treated to meet the land-disposal restriction levels, either at Landfill 5 or at the RCRA landfill. After sampling the bottom and sides of the cells to ensure that all the waste had been removed, cells were backfilled with clean soils.
As of November 2018, all wastes have been removed from all the cells. Reports indicate that the Air Force placed 12,800 tons of waste into Landfill 5, but due to leakage into the soil, these wastes generated approximately 33,000 tons of contaminated material. Much of this material has already been shipped off-site, and the Air Force is currently working to dispose of the remaining wastes and contaminated soils left in piles and containers on the site. Four cells have been backfilled, and three cells are still open but empty. After all remediation work has been completed, the site surface will be restored to a natural state and reseeded. This work should wrap up in the first quarter of 2019.
Currently, there are approximately 15 vent wells that remove solvent vapors from the ground below the landfill. After all the wastes are removed from the area of Landfill 5, another 15 vent wells will be placed in the ground. The vent well system will need to comply with air-quality regulations that limit the system’s emissions. These passive (non-powered) wells are anticipated to operate for many years before solvent contamination is reduced to appropriate levels.
Prior to operations, staff from the DWMRC reviewed the work plans for compliance with the rules and technical adequacy. Division inspectors routinely visit the site to assess ongoing compliance with the work plans. The Air Force will continue to generate reports during various stages of the project for DWMRC review.
