| Action Date |
Action |
Description |
DEC Staff |
| 3/26/1993 |
Update or Other Action |
DOD & ADEC joint Technical Memorandum of understanding signed concerning the Base-wide Groundwater (GW) signed by: ADEC Jennifer Roberts RPM & USAF Joseph Williamson Chief Environmental Programs & Restoration. Due to the base-wide GW study & the FY92 field work that occurred at Operable Units (OUs) 1, 2, & 5 it appears a large portion of the GW flows into OU5 (attachment 1-contour map). Based on this fact, Elmendorf (EAFB) will move all upgradient GW into the OU5 Feasibility Study, Proposed Plan & Record of Decision (ROD). This means addressing all GW from upgradient sources (CERCLA (ST20, OUs 3 and 4) & OUs 1 & portions of OU2) & SERA) at OU5 instead of at each individual source area (see attach. 2-Area Map). Sites with free phased product would be looked at to see if there is an available technology to clean them up in a cost effective way. Soil contamination would be addressed at the source areas. NOTE: addressed at the source areas is interpreted by ADEC as removal through excavation or active treatment systems (e.g. high vacuum extraction, bioventing, etc.). |
Jennifer Roberts |
| 5/6/1994 |
Update or Other Action |
6 May 1994 - Elmendorf AFB was notified of petroleum hydrocarbon contamination. An
approximate 225 square foot area had been excavated to approximately 3 feet and temporarily
stockpiled. Soil samples were collected from the site. |
John Halverson |
| 5/18/1994 |
Update or Other Action |
Air Force Environmental "WAR" Report for Project Review states on May 6, 1994 they were notified of a spill on project site "FY94 MILCON Project FXSB 95-3002R1/Child Development Center". 15'x15' area was excavated to approximately 3'x4' deep. Stockpiled soil had strong odor of diesel fuel. CORPS Quality Assurance officer stated no contamination was present at surface but as excavation reached the 1.5' depth, a strong petroleum odor was noted. Samples were taken from excavation area and results show DRO levels up to 2,150 mg/kg (May 4, 1994 Sample ID DC15494 sample DC25494 had 2,000 mg/kg DRO) EPA Method 8100M Analytica Laboratory). Total amount of soil generated is 400 cubic yards.
This spill is not typical of historical POL spills on similar areas on Elmendorf. First, it is unusual that soil contaminated with high DRO concentrations at 1 to 2 feet below the ground surface would not be contaminated in the upper 1 to 2 feet. It is unusual that such high concentrations of POL would stay in the upper areas of the column and not percolate or be carried deeper. Soil profiles show no intervening confining layer. Although BTEX levels are low, the DRO constituents were on the heavy end and elevated levels would not be expected.
Based on the information available, the characteristics of the vertical column thus far described might be expected to be associated with a newer spill which happened after the overburden had been removed. Further, the response to the spill appears to be in variance with the requirements of the contract which should require that the contractor immediately notify the Fire Department of the spill and Form 103 (Digging Permit) which required the contractor to stop work and notify CEVR immediately. |
John Halverson |
| 5/20/1994 |
Update or Other Action |
Memo for the Record (MFR) authored by John Mahaffey (USAF) May 20, 1994 RE: POL Spill at Child Development Center Project Site Notified of spill on project site by J. Williamson, CEVR and directed to investigate with Sharon Stone, CEVR. On site found an approximate 15 X 15 area excavated to approximately 3-4 feet. Inspected soil which had been removed and stockpiled. Detected strong odor of diesel in stockpiled soil. Was informed by COE QA that the area had shown no indication of POL contaminant on the surface but that strong POL oder had been encountered approximately 1.5 feet below surface. The area had been sampled with a PID and samples had been pulled and sent to the lab. Was further informed that the contamination was attenuating with depth in the excavation.
Stockpile appeared to meet state requirements. Ms Stone and I agreed that we should wait to see the lab results before we decided on a recommended remediation course. We further agreed and communicated to Capt Wahl, AF Project Manager, that we felt the pattern of contamination was not typical of spill on similar sites because of no surface indicators and rapid decrease in
concentration levels in the subsurface column. Asked that lab results be provided when available.
Lab results provided from COE on 10 May. Results showed DRO concentrations around 2000 ppm. Site clean up level for DRO is 200 ppm of DRO.
Meeting on 13 May with individuals on attached list. It was agreed that additional characterization of the area would be done by digging the area deeper and seeing if PID readings increased, decreased or remained the same. Results of this effort received 13 May.
Based on the results, were decreasing it appeared that the concentrations of POL rapidly at depth.
17 May 94 Met with Jim Bruce, CECCG, Sam Heaberlin, COE, Dave Harr, COE, Robert Koski, Davis CQC, Larry Helgeson, EMI on 17 May 94. At that meeting and based on the information available, Larry Helgeson and I concurred that it appeared that the contamination was confined to a reletively shallow column and that it might be possible to dig it out and put it in the stockpile. It was agreed by Mr. Bruce and the COE to do additional digging to explore that possibility. I suggested that since the contamination has been found within 2 feet of ground level, Hand borings and sniffing should be done to see if the spill had any greater extent than the excavated area. |
Louis Howard |
| 6/29/1994 |
Update or Other Action |
29 June 1994 - A remediation plan for the contamination identified at SS413 was submitted to
the AOEC. The plan included:
A brief summary of site activities;
soil stockpile analytical results for ORO, GRO, total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH), BTEX, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB), and toxicity characteristic leaching procedure (TCLP) for volatiles, semivolatiles, and Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) metals;
a request for approval for thermal desorption of approximately 300 cubic yards of
contaminated soil;
an interpretation of the analytical results as being representative of weathered fuel oil. |
John Halverson |
| 10/17/1996 |
Institutional Control Record Established |
Air Force memo: Restricted Use of the Shallow Aquifer on Elmendorf Air Force Base (EAFB) signed by William R. Hanson P.E. GM-14 Chief Environmental Flight dated October 17, 1996 Memorandum for 3 SPTG/CEC/CEO from 3 SPTG/CEV:
1) Due to the contamination and commitments to regulators the use of the shallow aquifer for any purpose on Elmendorf is not allowed. Please see the attached Facility Board minutes (March 29, 1994 0930-Item 9 of minutes). Mr. William Hanson, Chief of Environmental, briefed to the Facilities Board the policy to not use the shallow water aquifer due to contamination. The Facilities Board approved this policy. Minutes approved by Thomas R. Case Brigadier General USAF Commander. The Installation Restoration Program (IRP) has additional Record of Decisions (RODs) for Operable Units 3 and 6 which require, as a stipulation of the agreement with Environmental Protection Agency and Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation, this aquifer remain unused.
2) Our concern is that key personnel in the review process within Civil Engineer Squadron are aware of these policies and that these policies are reviewed on a recurring basis. It is imperative that this restriction be recognized and observed during engineer reviews and operations.
3) If you have questions on this subject, please contact Mr. Joe Williamson at 552-7229. |
Jennifer Roberts |
| 3/3/1997 |
Update or Other Action |
Surface Spills report March 31, 1997 SERA Phase IV received. The report states that the closure analysis results collected from the excavation on June 2, 1994 demonstrate that the site meets the cleanup levels of 200 mg/kg DRO except for sample DC152694 taken from the depth of 12 feet bgs (240 mg/kg DRO). |
Louis Howard |
| 10/21/2002 |
Update or Other Action |
J. Roberts sent a letter to Joe Williamson dissolving the State Elmendorf Environmental Restoration Agreement. The Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has reviewed the issue of abolishing the State Elmendorf Environmental Restoration Agreement (SERA) per your recommendation. Elmendorf Air Force Base and DEC entered into the SERA in 1992. The agreement was developed as a tool to bring the Base into compliance with Alaska's regulations addressing underground storage tanks, oil and other hazardous substance releases and solid waste.
Since that time, Elmendorf has made significant progress in investigating and cleaning up historic contamination problems. Many of the sites covered by the SERA have been successfully cleaned up and closed. Cleanup is underway at the remaining sites.
Additionally, Alaska has amended the regulations addressing fuel storage tanks, oil and other hazardous substance spills and solid waste. We concur with you that the SERA is no longer a necessary or beneficial. This letter serves as notice that DEC will end oversight on environmental work at Elmendorf by using the SERA. Instead, it is understood that the sites and programs formerly addressed by SERA: solid waste, underground storage tanks (UST), and oil and other hazardous substance discharges will be addressed in accordance with 18 AAC 60, 18 AAC 78 and 18 AAC 75. |
Jennifer Roberts |
| 12/3/2003 |
Long Term Monitoring Established |
Because SS 413 at Building 7377 is located in the capture zone of the OU 5 Groundwater study area and the Air Force is monitoring the groundwater on a regional basis, this site will be included as a part of that monitoring program. |
John Halverson |
| 12/5/2003 |
Cleanup Complete Determination Issued |
Acting Section Manager sent a NFRAP letter to John Mahaffey re: Compliance funded sites review and response. Residual soil and/or groundwater contamination is present at all of the sites. Based on our review, thirty-six (36) of the sites do not appear to pose an unacceptable risk to human health or the environment and are suitable for a No Further Remedial Action Planned (NFRAP) determination.
DEC's NFRAP determination indicates that no additional cleanup is necessary, but that institutional controls and/or long term monitoring are necessary. We have determined that the groundwater impacts at these sites are being adequately addressed within the base-wide groundwater monitoring program and the Operable Unit 5 groundwater treatment system. Because petroleum contaminated soil (e.g. contaminant levels higher than Method 2 cleanup levels in Tables B1/B2 found in 18 AAC 75.341) remains at these sites, the Base Master Plan needs to be updated to document the locations of residual contamination and the need to manage contaminated soil properly during any future construction or excavation work.
Sites in addition to SS411 referred to in the letter include ST sites: 404, 405, 411, 413, 414, 415, 430/9, 431, 501, 502, 503, 504, 505/9, 511, 512, 513, 514, 515, 517, 518, 519, 520, 521, 525, 528, 530, 533, 535, 536, 537, 700, 701, 902, 903, 904, and 906. Sites ST 420 and ST 524 are not located within the capture zone of the Operable Unit 5 treatment system (the outwash plain) and contain higher contaminant levels. Therefore, the ADEC is requesting additional site characterization at these two sites.
The following policy applies for soil regulated under 18 AAC 75 and 18 AAC 78 that is proposed for disposal off site from where it was generated. If the following criteria is met, ADEC approval and/or an institutional control(s) are not required:
1. The soil meets the most stringent Method Two, Migration to Groundwater, Table B2 cleanup level, and the most stringent standards for those chemicals under Table B1;
2. The soil may only be disposed of at any non-environmentally sensitive location in the Under 40" or Over 40" annual precipitation zone;
3. The soil is not placed within 100 feet of water wells, surface waters, and drainage ditches; and
4.The written approval from the landowner of the off-site location is required.
The off site disposal of all other soil subject to the site cleanup rules that does not meet the criteria above shall be reviewed by the ADEC project manager in order to determine if the off-site disposal action poses a current or future risk to human health or the environment. The final approval to dispose of soil off site that does not meet the criteria shall be made by the ADEC Section Manager. |
John Halverson |
| 4/23/2004 |
Site Added to Database |
DRO. |
Sarah Cunningham |
| 7/23/2004 |
Site Ranked Using the AHRM |
Site ranked by project manager since it was not ranked before. |
Louis Howard |
| 4/7/2010 |
Exposure Tracking Model Ranking |
Initial ranking with ETM completed for source area id: 73014 name: auto-generated pm edit Elmendorf SS413 Bldg 7377 |
Louis Howard |
| 6/10/2013 |
Institutional Control Record Removed |
Institutional Controls have been removed. |
Louis Howard |
