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Site Report: Chalkyitsik School Bulk Fuel Storage

Site Name: Chalkyitsik School Bulk Fuel Storage
Address: Salmon Avenue and Fishhook Drive, Chalkyitsik, AK 99788
File Number: 720.38.002
Hazard ID: 4648
Status: Active
Staff: Bill O'Connell, 9072693057 bill.oconnell@alaska.gov
Latitude: 66.650182
Longitude: -143.727886
Horizontal Datum:WGS84

We make every effort to ensure the data presented here is accurate based on the best available information currently on file with DEC. It is therefore subject to change as new information becomes available. We recommend contacting the assigned project staff prior to making decisions based on this information.

Problems/Comments

Historic spills and leaks have caused area wide soil contamination near the Chalkyitsik School Bulk Fuel Storage facility. These source areas include: The Former Fuel Bladder Storage Area and the School Water Treatment Building Day Tank; The Village Council and School District Tank Farm; the Generator Building; the Northern Teacher’s Housing; the Pipeline leak at the Water Treatment Building and the 2009 diesel pipeline release. These six sites are summarized below. • The Former Fuel Bladder Storage Area and the School Water Treatment Building Day Tank- These areas are impacted by petroleum contamination which appears to have originated from the Former Fuel Bladder Storage Area. During a site inspection in 2002 visual staining, free product, and petroleum odor was reported. Nine soil samples collected at the site contained diesel range organics (DRO) up to 22,000 mg/kg, gasoline range organics (GRO) up to 2,360 mg/kg, and xylenes up to 173 mg/kg at 1 foot below ground surface (bgs); and DRO up to 17,200 mg/kg and naphthalene up to 90.6 mg/kg at 7 feet bgs. It is estimated that approximately 175 cubic yards of contaminated soil remains on site. • The Village Council and School District Tank Farm- This site consists of seven vertical above ground storage tanks (ASTs) which are reportedly still on site. During a site inspection in 2002, a petroleum odor and a slow leak on the main supply line from the ASTs was noted. Seven soil samples and one ground water sample collected from outside the lined, bermed area of the tank farm contained DRO up to 4,340 mg/kg at 2.5 feet bgs and 2.03 mg/L, respectively. Frozen soil was encountered at 4.5 feet to 7 feet bgs and groundwater was encountered at 6 ft. bgs. An estimated 130 cubic yards of contaminated soil remains onsite. • Generator Building- Drums and soil staining were observed at this site during a site inspection in 2002. A soil sample collected from the visually stained area at 1 foot bgs contained DRO up to 14,800 mg/kg and GRO up to 1,850 mg/kg. A soil sample collected at 8.5 feet bgs contained DRO up to 7,740 mg/kg and naphthalene up to 61.7 mg/kg. A groundwater sample collected from a well point installed south of the generator building contained DRO up to 7.61 mg/L, GRO up to 15.1 mg/L, and benzene up to 0.685 mg/L. An estimated 35 cubic yards of contaminated soil remain on site. • Northern Teacher’s Housing- Soil staining and petroleum odor were observed at this site during a site inspection in 2002. Seven soil samples collected contained DRO up to 19,100 mg/kg, GRO up to 1,010 mg/kg, ethylbenzene up to 15.4 mg/kg, and xylenes up to 100.9 mg/kg. at 1 foot bgs and DRO up to 2, 460 mg/kg at 3 feet bgs. An estimated 38 cubic yards of contaminated soil remain on site. • Southern Teacher’s Housing- Soil staining was observed at this site during a site inspection in 2002. One soil sample collected from a stain beneath the HOT at 1 foot bgs contained DRO up to 14,800 mg/kg and xylenes up to 90.7 mg/kg. An estimated 25 cubic yards of contaminated soil remain on site. • Water Treatment Building- Soil staining was observed, reportedly from a pipeline leak, during the 2002 site inspection. A soil sample collected at a depth of 0.5 feet bgs contained DRO up to 19,000 mg/kg, GRO up to 979 mg/kg, ethylbenzene up to 19.4 mg/kg, and xylenes up to 143.3 mg/kg. An estimated 25 cubic yards of contaminated soil • On May 6, 2009, 75 gallons of diesel fuel leaked out of a fuel pipe located 40 feet west of the Chalkyitsik School playground due to operator error. On May 14, 2009, PERP arrived on scene as part of the Yukon River flood response team. Guided by visual and olfactory senses only, a 20 foot by 60 foot area of contaminated soil was excavated from underneath the pipeline. The approximately 20 cubic yards of contaminated soil was then put on a 20 mil liner biocell and fertilized south of the school.

Action Information

Action Date Action Description DEC Staff
9/17/2002 Update or Other Action ADEC received the Chalkyitsik Site Characterization Project Report dated April 25, 2003 submitted by Oasis. On September 17, 2002, areas potentially contaminated by fuel at the existing tank farm and various other fuel storage and transfer tanks in the village were assessed. The goal was to access the amount of fuel contamination present in site soils and groundwater, develop a preliminary evaluation of the risk posed by the contamination, and to develop recommendations regarding how to remediate the sites. Two types of sites were investigated: primary sites including the existing tank farm and secondary sites such as small fuel storage tanks and/or potential spill sites. Multiple sites were found throughout Chalkyitsik with contamination above ADEC cleanup levels. Grant Lidren
10/19/2002 Update or Other Action A 250-gallon fuel tank containing heating oil for Southern Teacher's Housing failed over the weekend of October 19 and 20, 2002 when the school generator shut down. The fuel pump continued to push heating oil into the day tank and flowed downhill along a trail before it pooled onto the adjacent airport land owned by the ADOT. YFSD calculated the fuel loss to be about 730 gallons of heating oil(see file# 720.38.001 Chalkyisik School HOT Spill for more information). . Grant Lidren
6/20/2008 Site Added to Database Site added to the database. Mitzi Read
6/24/2008 Exposure Tracking Model Ranking Initial ranking with ETM completed. Grant Lidren
12/10/2008 Exposure Tracking Model Ranking Initial ranking with ETM completed for source area id: 78628 name: Villiage Council and School district Tank Farm Grant Lidren
12/11/2008 Update or Other Action A communication with Ellen williams of the DEC Drinking Wate Program indicates the public water system for Chalkyitsik Village Water is a Class A water system consisting of 1 source intake(s). The water system is located in Chalkyitsik and the intake for this PWSID is a surface water source. The overall protection area received a susceptibility rating of "very high". In addition, this water system has received a vulnerability rating of "high" for bacteria/viruses, "medium" for nitrates/nitrites, "medium" for volatile organic chemicals, "medium" for heavy metals, "medium" for other organic chemicals, and "medium" for synthetic organic chemicals. Grant Lidren
12/29/2008 Exposure Tracking Model Ranking Initial ranking with ETM completed for source area id: 78645 name: Generator building Grant Lidren
12/29/2008 Exposure Tracking Model Ranking Initial ranking with ETM completed for source area id: 78647 name: Water Treatment Building Pipeline Spill Grant Lidren
5/6/2009 Update or Other Action In 2009, a valve on a pipe was inadvertently left open spilling 75 gallons of fuel on Marten Street, west of the school. On May 6, 2009 PERP responded to the spill. Contaminated soil was excavated and put in a fenced 20 by 60 foot biocell located east of the village and school tank farm. During the PERP site inspection, numerous 55 gallon barrels were noted by the power plant, south of the storage building, and south of the sewage lagoon. Some of the barrels appeared to be leaking. Grant Lidren
4/28/2010 Meeting or Teleconference Held Per the Chalkyitsik Cleanup Pre-Scoping Meeting on 4-27-10, ADEC requests Hoefler to: acquire clean fill prior to excavation activities; Bring excavations back to grade with clean fill following removal of contaminated soil (i.e. excavations cannot remain open); and cleanup activities may not occur while school is in session. ADEC understands that if clean fill cannot be obtained before breakup, cleanup activities will be postponed until the summer of 2011. Grant Lidren
6/29/2010 Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other On this date, ADEC received the Work Plan for Excavation and Remediation of Contaminated Soil at the Chalkyitsik School and Airport Hazard Ids 4648, 3959, and 25308. Pending accessibility of backfill source in conjunction with the School schedule, work may occur in late July or early August 2010, but most likely won’t occur until next year during late June to early July 2011. Grant Lidren
12/6/2010 Update or Other Action Per a phone conversation with SLR/Hoefler on this date, no gravel clean fill was obtained/stockpiled during the fall 2010. Therefore, clean fill will be obtained/stockpiled spring 2011 at the earliest. Grant Lidren
5/26/2011 Update or Other Action Per a phone conversation with SLR on this date, despite efforts to obtain cleanfill, no clean fill was able to be obtained/stockpiled during the Spring of 2011, due to logistical problems. Grant Lidren
6/16/2011 Site Visit ADEC and SLR performed a site visit on this date. The ASTs located at the Northern Teacher’s housing at the GPS coordinate 66.65040, -143.72701 contained low PID screening results and there were no obvious signs of contamination. At the north side of the Water Treatment Building (WTB) (GPS coordinate 66.64992, -143.72818) high PID and odor was noted. At the HOT located west of the WTB (GPS coordinate 66.65012, -143.72778) elevated screening levels were noted in the surface soil but no staining was evident. At the Generator building: drums, staining under building and high PID reading off south east corner noted (GPS coordinate 66.64975, -143.72791). At the former bladder area located south of the school at the GPS coordinate 66.65016, -143.72815, thirty-five screening samples were collected 6 to 18 inches bgs. A gravel road goes through the former bladder area. Screened samples from the road area were not significant, which may be due to gravel road over the potentially contaminated soil. A couple of screening samples collected between the road and school contained slightly elevated screening levels. Screened samples collected south of the road were elevated up to 2,000ppm at 18 inches bgs increasing with depth. Grant Lidren
6/16/2011 Meeting or Teleconference Held On this date, ADEC and SLR met with Isaac Peter, the Village Travel Administrator, and did a walk through to the various sites. Isaac stated that the location for the potential landfarm area at the airport apron will need to be discussed with the village council. Isaac indicated the village has plans for accessing a new gravel source west of the Airport and the heavy equipment in the village is in good working condition. He also indicated that the landfill may be relocated, so contaminated soil as land fill cover may be an option. Grant Lidren
7/21/2011 Update or Other Action On this date, ADEC received lab results from the June 16th 2011 limited surface soil sampling at Chalkyitsik School. Surface soil samples collected from: the fuel line 2009 excavation contained up to 38,500 mg/kg DRO; the biocell area contained up to 1,900 mg/kg DRO; the former bladder area contained up to 13,200 mg/kg DRO; the water treatment building contained up to 26,200 mg/kg DRO; and the generator building contained DRO at 37,100 mg/kg. Grant Lidren
8/1/2011 Meeting or Teleconference Held on this date, Meeting held with SLR to discuss revision of scope due to logistical issues at the site. On 10/3/2011 ADEC received a revised cost estimate for Chalkyitsik. Grant Lidren
8/19/2011 Potentially Responsible Party/State Interest Letter PRP letter sent to YFSD Superintendant on this date. Grant Lidren
10/14/2011 Spill Transferred from Prevention Preparedness and Response Program Spill transferred by PERP staff Wesley Ghormley. Spill no. 09309912604; spill date = 5/6/09; substance = diesel; quantity = ~75 gallons; PERP file no. 720.02.004; description: fuel was relesed to the ground adjacent to Marten Street from cut off pipeline plumbed into the school tank farm. Mitzi Read
10/24/2011 Exposure Tracking Model Ranking Initial ranking with ETM completed for source area id: 79193 name: Pipeline Release - PERP Spill No. 09309912604 Mitzi Read
3/14/2012 Exposure Tracking Model Ranking A new updated ranking with ETM has been completed for these six source areas: 78646 Northern Teacher's Housing; 75715 Former Bladder Area & School Water Day Tank; 78628 Villiage Council & School district Tank Farm; 78647 Water Treatment Building Pipeline Spill; 79193 Pipeline Release - PERP Spill No. 09309912604; and 78645 Generator building. Grant Lidren
3/27/2012 Meeting or Teleconference Held Per a phone conversation with SLR on this date, despite efforts to obtain cleanfill, no clean fill was able to be obtained/stockpiled during the Spring of 2012, due to logistical problems. Grant Lidren
9/15/2012 Update or Other Action 600 cubic yards of cleanfill stockpiled on site. Grant Lidren
10/6/2012 Update or Other Action Clean gravel backfilling and capping and biocell decommissioning was conducted on October 6 and 7, 2012. The biocell area was decommissioned by removing the liner and taking it to the landfill and removing the snow fence and lining the pipeline spill area depression. The biocell soil was then placed in the pipeline spill depression on top of the snow fence and capped with 1 foot of clean fill. An additional 1.5 feet of fill was place on the area of distressed vegetation adjacent to the pipeline spill area depression noted during the June 2011 site visit. At the Former Fuel Bladder area, a gravel cap was placed over most of the area to the south of the school. The area of contamination noted in this area during the June 2011 investigation was capped with 2.0 feet clean fill. Raised driveways in the spill area were capped with 1.0 feet of clean fill. Fill was tapered to match existing grades. A minor amount of gravel was used to restore access roads at the southern school yard, as dump truck traffic had softened and rutted these driveways. Grass seed and fertilizer was spread on the gravel cap with the exception of driveway areas. The Chalkyitsik School HOT Spill was also capped with clean fill (see file # 720.38.001 for more information). Grant Lidren
10/6/2012 Update or Other Action On October 6 & 7, 11 wellpoint boreholes were advanced and screened/sampled and surface water samples were collected. Two surface water samples collected from a slough adjacent to the school did not contain detectable levels of petroleum constituents except for one of the samples. The PAH acenaphthene was detected at an estimated concentration of 0.0191 µg/L below the LOQ of 0.03 ug/L. This result is below The 18 AAC 70 AK WQS for acenapthene in freshwater which is 1,200 ug/L. The depths of the 11 boreholes advanced ranged from 4.9 feet to 12.3 feet bgs. All borings terminated at frozen ground except WP-1. PID soil screening results collected from the boreholes ranged from 0.0 ppm to over 4,000 ppm. Elevated PID readings in the boreholes were typically encountered deeper at the groundwater interface. The highest overall PID-screening results up to 4,000 ppm were measured in a dry borehole WP-3, at the Fuel Line Spill site, 4 to 6 feet bgs. Other borings with higher screening results included WP-4 (east of the Water Treatment Building), WP-6 (west of the Former Fuel Bladder Storage Area), and WP-10 and WP-11 (north of the Water Treatment Building). Out of the eleven boreholes advanced, suprapremafrost groundwater was encountered in only three: WP-1, WP-4, and WP-9. WP-1 (south of the Water Treatment Building) did not contain detectable levels of contaminants. WP-4 contained GRO up to 3.85 mg/L, DRO up to 68.7 mg/L, and benzene up to 0.0841 mg/L. WP-9 (south of the Former Fuel Bladder Storage Area) contained DRO at 6.21 mg/L. The eight dry bore holes were located east, west, and north of the former fuel bladder area. Grant Lidren
4/26/2013 Update or Other Action ADEC received the Chalkyitsik School and Airport Site Activities Report submitted by SLR dated April 2013. In addition to the limited surface soil sampling conducted in June 2011, the report discusses work completed in October 2012. The October 2012 work included: collecting pid samples and GW samples from 11 well point boreholes, collecting surface water samples from the downgradient slough, breaking down the biocell area, and capping the contaminated areas with Six hundred yd3 of cleanfill. Grant Lidren
12/8/2014 Exposure Tracking Model Ranking A new updated ranking with ETM has been completed for source area 75715 Former Bladder Area & School Water Day Tank. Joshua Barsis
6/9/2015 Update or Other Action Transfer from Anchorage to Fairbanks 6/9/15 Susan Carberry
7/3/2017 Update or Other Action A letter was sent to Yukon Flats School District ranking all schools with contaminated sites within the school district according to human health risk. Joy Whitsel
6/28/2019 Update or Other Action Letter provided to BIA providing a list of 31 sites where BIA is a PRP and requesting a meeting to discuss long-term planning for cleanup at these sites. Gretchen Caudill
10/7/2021 Exposure Tracking Model Ranking A new updated ranking with ETM has been completed for source area 78646 Northern Teacher's Housing. Bill O'Connell

Contaminant Information

Name Level Description Media Comments

Control Type

Type Details

Requirements

Description Details

There are no documents for this site report.

Hazard ID Site Name File Number
3959 Chalkyitsik School HOT Spill 720.38.001
25748 Chalkyitsik School Pipeline Release

Missing Location Data

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