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Site Report: Tanana Community Hall

Site Name: Tanana Community Hall
Address: Intersection of First Avenue & Koyukuk Street, Tanana, AK 99777
File Number: 780.38.017
Hazard ID: 26250
Status: Active
Staff: Breanna Mahoney, 9072697503 breanna.mahoney@alaska.gov
Latitude: 65.169791
Longitude: -152.070608
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

In July 2013, the DEC received notification that contaminated soil had been encountered during the digging of a ditch by the City of Tanana along the roadway (spill #13309919502). Initial information collected indicated the area was previously used for storage of bunker-C fuel oil at a wood-stave tank farm and there was a historic spill when construction hit a fuel line that ran from the tanks to a header near the shore of the Yukon River. Contaminated material from the 2013 trenching was removed and transported to a liner near the landfill to undergo natural attenuation. The Tanana Tribal Council submitted a DEC Brownfield Assessment and Cleanup (DBAC) request in 2013 to assess contamination at the site. The applicants and the community are concerned there is possible contamination from past activities related to the former tank farm and old stave piping. In 2015 a Property Assessment and Cleanup Plan for the Tanana Community Hall was completed. Contamination at the site is believed to have originated from wood-stave fuel tanks that were on the property (possibly as part of Fort Gibbon)sometime prior to the early 1960s. Petroleum contamination, probably Bunker C, was observed in the surface soil on the south side of Lot 7 with diesel range organics (DRO)up to 122,000 mg/Kg, residual range organics (RRO) up to 139,000 mg/Kg, benzene up to 0.0591 mg/Kg, 1-methylnaphthalene, 2-methylnaphthalene, and benzo(a)anthracene were detected above cleanup levels. In 2017 a supplementary assessment on the Tanana Community Hall was completed under DEC's Brownfield Assessment and Cleanup Program. Consistent with the 2015 PACP report, apparent Bunker C fuel oil contamination was observed in the southern portion of the property boundary in a distinct 2 to 6 in thick layer at approximately 0.5 to 1.5 ft bgs. Analytical soil sampling within the visibly contaminated area identified concentrations of DRO, RRO, and six PAH analytes above ADEC SCLs. Analytical results showed no evidence of vertical migration of COPCs in the soil. Bunker C contamination appeared to be confined to the upper 2 ft bgs. Results from samples collected from the TWPs indicated no impacts to groundwater from historical releases of Bunker C contamination. The northwest and northeast corners of the visibly contaminated tar layer were delineated by S&W. PCBs were not detected in the soil samples collected from the visibly contaminated tar layer or from the location near First Avenue. Arsenic concentrations ranged from 4.67 gm/kg to 10.1 mg/kg. Data from five stream or pond sediment samples collected within a 9-mile radius of Tanana resulted in mean localized background concentrations for Arsenic of 9.2 mg/kg. The analytical data presented in this report, suggest that the site contains naturally occurring Arsenic concentrations above the ADEC Method Two SCLs. In 2019 a Supplementary Assessment on the Tanana Community Hall was finalized under DEC's Brownfield Assessment and Cleanup Program. The report described the field activities conducted on October 16-18, 2018 to characterize the nature of the Bunker C contaminated soil, and characterize the nature and extent of the hydraulic oil contaminated soil located on the parcel containing the Tanana Community Hall. These activities were used to inform remedial options in the Analysis of Brownfield Cleanup Alternatives (ABCA) report dated December 2018. In 2019 an Analysis of Brownfield Cleanup Alternatives was finalized under DEC's Brownfield Assessment and Cleanup Program. The possible actions included: No action; Disposal in Tanana City Landfill – Alternative #1; Offsite Thermal Remediation – Alternative #2; Landfarming – Alternative #3; and Bioremediation – Alternative #4.Both the no action and disposal in Tanana City Landfill have been ruled out due to lack of protecting human health, and contaminant concentration and leaching probability respectively. Offsite Thermal Remediation had the highest likely cost, and Landfarming and Bioremediation both recommend treatability studies. Ahtna Engineering incorporated comments from ADEC’s December 13, 2018 letter, and proceeded to discuss the options with the Community of Tanana. The remedial options were evaluated based on protection of public health, safety, environmental welfare and feasibility. All of the options were evaluated except no action and capping. A draft of the ABCA was posted on the ADEC website with a public notice on February 15, 2019. A 30 day public comment period was held from February 20, 2019 to March 22, 2019, with a public notice posted in the Daily News-Miner, and flyers posted in Tanana. A public meeting was held on February 26, 2019 at the Tanana Community Hall from 12-2 pm. Two comments were received and supported Alternative #2 Offsite Thermal Remediation. The final ABCA submitted on March 28, 2019 included the information pertaining to the public comment period, and public comments received.

Action Information

Action Date Action Description DEC Staff
2/21/2014 Brownfields Award Site awarded DEC Brownfields Assessment and Cleanup (DBAC) services for FY2015. EPA State and Tribal Response Program (STRP) funds $35,791 awarded to Tanana Tribal Council for an Environmental Site Assessment on the Tanana Community Hall. Contract # 17-0000054. Current status: PACP and soil sampling in progress. Lisa Griswold
7/8/2014 Site Added to Database A new site has been added to the database Mitzi Read
7/8/2014 Spill Transferred from Prevention Preparedness and Response Program Spill transferred by PERP staff Patrik Sartz. Spill no. 13309919502; spill date = 7/14/13; substance = (assumed) bunker-C/no. 6 fuel oil; quantity = unknown; description: Historic contamination, exact cause unknown but site has been used for a former wood-stave tank farm where wooden containers were used to store bunker-C/no. 6 fuel oil. PERP file no. 780.02.002. Mitzi Read
7/9/2014 Exposure Tracking Model Ranking Initial ranking with ETM completed for source area id: 79645 name: Historic Petroleum Contamination Mitzi Read
7/18/2014 Update or Other Action Letter sent on 7/18/14 to the State Historic Preservation Office requesting concurrence that no historic properties will be affected by DEC's proposed actvities for 2014. DEC proposes to trench the site using a backhoe, and sample the soil to help delineate the vertical and lateral extent of contamination. Melinda Brunner
7/31/2014 Update or Other Action Project Management transferred to CS Staff Megan Dooley. Keri DePalma
9/12/2014 Update or Other Action ADEC received the PACP work plan from Shannon&Wilson. The PACP work plan proposes to assess Lot 7 environmental concerns by limited field investigation and researching site history through records review and interviews. The proposed site investigation will include excavating trenches or test pits, soil screening and collection of three samples that will be analyzed for DRO, RRO, GRO, and BTEX. One sample will be analyzed for PAH. Lisa Krebs-Barsis
3/19/2015 Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other Reviewed the final Tanana Community Hall PACP. Contamination at the site is believed to originate from wood-stave fuel tanks that were on the property (possibly as part of Fort Gibbon)sometime prior to the early 1960s. Petroleum contamination, probably Bunker C, was observed in the surface soil on the south side of Lot 7 with diesel range organics (DRO)up to 122,000 mg/Kg, residual range organics (RRO) up to 139,000 mg/Kg, benzene up to 0.0591 mg/Kg, 1-methylnaphthalene, 2-methylnaphthalene, and benzo(a)anthracene were detected above cleanup levels. Copies of the report were sent to the Brownfields grantee Tanana Tribal Council, landowner Tozitna Limited, and to the EPA IGAP coordinator. Lisa Krebs-Barsis
1/12/2016 Meeting or Teleconference Held DBAC funding pre-application meeting held with Tanana Tribal Council. Lisa Krebs-Barsis
2/17/2016 Brownfields Award Site awarded DEC Brownfields Assessment and Cleanup Services for FY2017. EPA State and Tribal Response Program (STRP) funds of $39,000 awarded to Tanana Tribal Council for soil and groundwater investigation in the Tanana Community Hall. Lisa Griswold
8/19/2016 Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other Reviewed Tanana Community Hall Brownfield Assessment Work Plan. Activities proposed under this work plan include collecting soil samples from at least 7 shallow test pits and three deep soil borings, sampling groundwater from three temporary well points, evaluating of the presence and extent of fuel piping associated with the site, and providing recommendations for future investigation at the site. Bill O'Connell
1/30/2017 Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other Review of the Tanana Community Hall Brownfield Assessment Report, January 2017 Final (Ahtna). Consistent with the 2015 PACP report, apparent Bunker C fuel oil contamination was observed in the southern portion of the property boundary in a distinct 2 to 6 in thick layer at approximately 0.5 to 1.5 ft bgs. Analytical soil sampling within the visibly contaminated area identified concentrations of DRO, RRO, and six PAH analytes above ADEC SCLs. Analytical results show no evidence of vertical migration of COPCs in the soil. Bunker C contamination appears to be confined to the upper 2 ft bgs. Results from samples collected from the TWPs indicate no impacts to groundwater from historical releases of Bunker C contamination. The northwest and northeast corners of the visibly contaminated tar layer were delineated by S&W. This report confirms the lateral extent of the tar layer as well as the additional COPCs to the east and west. However, the extent to which the visibly contaminated tar layer extends beneath First Avenue remains unknown; Ahtna was unable to refine the southern extent due to the presence of underground utilities (phone, water, and sewer). Additionally, uncertainty exist in regards to the northwest corner of the property boundary where DRO and RRO exceeded SCLs, but no visibly contaminated soil was observed. This area of contamination likely comes from a different source as the physical and chemical characteristics (visual evidence, odor, PID readings, and DRO/RRO chromatograms) are not the same as for the Bunker C contamination. According to the laboratory, the hydrocarbon signature observed in the DRO/RRO chromatogram for sample 16-TAL-TP-08-1.2-1.3 was consistent with a lube oil, not a fuel. PCBs were not detected in the soil samples collected from the visibly contaminated tar layer or from the location near First Avenue; therefore, PCBs should not be considered a COPC at the site. Arsenic concentrations ranged from 4.67 gm/kg to 10.1 mg/kg. Data from five stream or pond sediment samples collected within a 9-mile radius of Tanana resulted in mean localized background concentrations for As of 9.2 mg/kg. The analytical data presented in this report, suggest that the site contains naturally occurring As concentrations above the ADEC Method Two SCLs. Darren Mulkey
3/15/2018 Brownfields Award Site awarded DEC Brownfields Assessment and Cleanup (DBAC) services for FY 2019. EPA State and Tribal Response Program (STRP) funds $39,027.00 to Tozitna, Ltd for an Analysis of Brownfield Cleanup Alternatives (ABCA) and CAP development. Current status complete. Lisa Griswold
9/25/2018 Update or Other Action Notice to Proceed sent to Ahtna Engineering for the FY 2019 DEC Brownfields Cleanup project. Lisa Griswold
10/16/2018 Site Characterization Workplan Approved Sampling and Analysis Plan with addendum in support of writing an Analysis of Brownfield Cleanup Alternatives approved on this date. The Sampling plan includes collecting 10 samples at the area of Bunker C contamination for DRO, RRO, BTEX and PAH analysis with 5 samples also collected for TCLP and SPLP analysis. The addendum includes field screening the area of lube oil contamination with 20 petroFLAG tests, and collecting 8 samples for DRO and RRO analysis, with the highest field screened sample also collected for BTEX and PAH analysis. The highest field screened sample will also be collected for TCLP and SPLP analysis. Lisa Griswold
1/15/2019 Meeting or Teleconference Held Teleconference held to discuss Alternatives proposed in the Analysis of Brownfield Cleanup Alternatives developed by Ahtna, Engineering. Lisa Griswold
1/23/2019 Meeting or Teleconference Held Teleconference held to discuss Alternatives proposed in the Analysis of Brownfield Cleanup Alternatives developed by Ahtna, Engineering with the City of Tanana, the Tanana Tribal Council and Tozitna, Limited. Also discussed was hosting a public meeting in Tanana as part of the 30 day public comment period. Lisa Griswold
2/15/2019 Public Notice Public notice posted online and in the Daily News Miner to solicit public comment on the Analysis of Brownfield Cleanup Alternatives for the Tanana Community Hall. The public comment period is open February 20 - March 22, 2019. Lisa Griswold
2/26/2019 Meeting or Teleconference Held Public meeting held on this date in Tanana as part of the 30 day public comment period for the Analysis of Brownfield Cleanup Alternatives. Lisa Griswold
2/28/2019 Site Characterization Report Approved The Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation (ADEC) received Ahtna Inc.’s Final Tanana Community Hall Supplemental Site Characterization Report December 2018 on February 25, 2019. The report describes the field activities conducted on October 16-18, 2018 to characterize the nature of the Bunker C contaminated soil, and characterize the nature and extent of the hydraulic oil contaminated soil located on the parcel containing the Tanana Community Hall. These activities were used to inform remedial options in the Analysis of Brownfield Cleanup Alternatives (ABCA) report dated December 2018. A discussion of the contents and findings of the report is in ADEC’s December 13, 2018 comment letter. ADEC has no further comments on the report contents, but requests that the notice of destruction of the Bunker C oil found during site characterization activities be submitted to ADEC once it is received (presumed summer 2019) Lisa Griswold
4/1/2019 Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other ADEC approved of the Analysis of Brownfield Cleanup Alternatives received on March 28, 2019 on this date. The possible actions included: No action; Disposal in Tanana City Landfill – Alternative #1; Offsite Thermal Remediation – Alternative #2; Landfarming – Alternative #3; and Bioremediation – Alternative #4.Both the no action and disposal in Tanana City Landfill have been ruled out due to lack of protecting human health, and contaminant concentration and leaching probability respectively. Offsite Thermal Remediation had the highest likely cost, and Landfarming and Bioremediation both recommend treatability studies. Ahtna Engineering incorporated comments from ADEC’s December 13, 2018 letter, and proceeded to discuss the options with the Community of Tanana. The remedial options were evaluated based on protection of public health, safety, environmental welfare and feasibility. All of the options were evaluated except no action and capping. A draft of the ABCA was posted on the ADEC website with a public notice on February 15, 2019. A 30 day public comment period was held from February 20, 2019 to March 22, 2019, with a public notice posted in the Daily News-Miner, and flyers posted in Tanana. A public meeting was held on February 26, 2019 at the Tanana Community Hall from 12-2 pm. Two comments were received and supported Alternative #2 Offsite Thermal Remediation. The ABCA submitted on March 28, 2019 includes the information pertaining to the public comment period, and public comments received. Lisa Griswold
2/25/2020 Update or Other Action Site file reassigned to Contaminated Sites on this date. FKA 780.57.004 Cascade Galasso-Irish
4/3/2024 Update or Other Action A DBAC application was recieved for funding year 2023 and 2024 from Larry Lau, Tozitna. The project was not selected for a DBAC both years because the applicant indicated that he (Larry Lau) and the Yukon River Intertribal Watershed Council (YRITWC) submitted an ANCSA Contaminated Lands grant application (which is on a rolling application acceptance basis) and the EPA indicated the project would is in the process of being selected for and receiving EPA ANCSA Contaminated Lands grant monies. Breanna Mahoney passed this information along to the YRITWC (Jordan Finney) and Larry Lau (Tozitna) on 04.04.2024 Breanna Mahoney

Contaminant Information

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Description Details

No associated sites were found.

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