Site Report: BLM Legacy Well Umiat Test Well #1 (FUDS)
| Site Name: | BLM Legacy Well Umiat Test Well #1 (FUDS) |
|---|---|
| Address: | 4.5 Mi. W & 2.5 Mi. N. of, Umiat Airstrip, Nuiqsut, AK 99789 |
| File Number: | 335.38.001 |
| Hazard ID: | 3090 |
| Status: | Cleanup Complete |
| Staff: | No Longer Assigned, 9074655229 dec.icunit@alaska.gov |
| Latitude: | 69.400000 |
| Longitude: | -152.333333 |
| Horizontal Datum: |
|  |
 |  |
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
Site consists of the area affected by former well drilling activities in the immediate vicinity surrounding Umiat Test Well No. 1 wellhead. Site has impacts resulting from exploratory oil well drilling activities conducted in the late 1940’s and early 1950’s. Site has three distinct drilling mud piles. Contaminants found in soil and drilling muds are residual range organics, aluminum, arsenic, barium, and iron. Highest barium concentrations were found in a white clay pile near the well head. Barium has migrated down an intermittent stream bed leading to Seabee Creek, but samples do not detect any migration into Seabee Creek. Umiat Test Well No. 1 is located approx. 4.5 miles west and 2.5 miles north of the Umiat airstrip, at the crest of a sloping ridge between the north and south forks of Seabee Creek, at an elevation of 801 feet. See Umiat Former Air Force Station, reckey 198931X902511, for actions prior to June 2004. Prior to this time, the entire Umiat facility was managed as one site. In June, 2004, the facility was broken out into separate sites for the Main Gravel Pad, Airstrip Complex, Landfill and Seasonal Slough, 11 former Navy Test Wells, and Umiat Lake.
Action Information
| Action Date | Action | Description | DEC Staff |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6/7/2004 | Site Added to Database | RRO and metals. | Tamar Stephens |
| 9/10/2007 | Update or Other Action | Tamar Stephen (DEC) conducted a site visit by helicopter along with Corps of Engineers project manager Mary Jemin and project engineer Bob Haviland. | Tamar Stephens |
| 3/12/2008 | Exposure Tracking Model Ranking | Initial ranking with ETM completed. | Tamar Stephens |
| 12/29/2009 | Cleanup Complete Determination Issued | A Close Out Report / Decision Document for no further action at Umiat Test Well No. 1 was signed by John Halverson on December 29, 2009. This test well, drilled by the Navy in the late 1940’s, was investigated by the Corps of Engineers in 1997 and 1998. The only contaminants of concern were arsenic and barium. Arsenic is present at naturally-occurring concentrations. Barium was used as a drilling mud additive. RRO was detected below Method 2 cleanup levels. At the time the site was investigated, barium concentrations exceeded the Method 2 cleanup level. Since the 2008 promulgation of a new cleanup level based on updated toxicity information, the maximum detected at the site is below the new cleanup level. This cleanup determination is based on the updated toxicity information. An Ecological Risk Assessment (2001) concluded that soil invertebrates will have direct contact with contaminated surface soil. Soil invertebrates and plants can absorb contaminants in their tissues. Herbivores can accumulate contaminants by ingesting contaminated vegetation or by incidental ingestion of soil, and insectivores can absorb contaminants by ingesting contaminated soil invertebrates. Small burrowing herbivorous and insectivorous mammals can be exposed to contaminants directly by direct contact with contaminated surface soil. Potential adverse effects were found for the willow ptarmigan, arctic warbler, and arctic shrew from direct contact with soil. However, due to the limited areal extent of the barium, potential adverse effects to these ecological receptors are limited to individual members of a species, not entire populations. Potential adverse effects were found to be unlikely for the two species that are used for subsistence: moose (HI = 0.1) and caribou (HI = 0.06). Potential adverse effects were found to be unlikely for the arctic fox (HI = 0.004) and snowy owl (HI= 0.004), which represent carnivorous predator species. No known threatened or endangered species occur near the former Umiat Air Force Station. Investigation of the site is documented in: 1) Final Phase III Remedial Investigation Report, 1997 Fieldwork, Former Umiat Air Force Station, Alaska (July 1988) 2) Final 1998 Field Investigation Report, Former Umiat Air Force Station, Umiat Alaska (October 1999) 3) Human Health and Ecological Risk Assessment, Naval Petroleum Reserve No. 4 Test Well Nos. 1, 7, and 9, Former Umiat Air Force Station, Umiat. Alaska | Tamar Stephens |
| 12/31/2009 | Exposure Tracking Model Ranking | A new updated ranking with ETM has been completed for source area 74065 Umiat Test Well No. 01. | Tamar Stephens |
| 11/13/2019 | Meeting or Teleconference Held | DEC staff participated in the Restoration Advisory Board meeting in Nuiqsut, where the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers discussed planned activities for Umiat FUDS sites. | Melinda Brunner |
Contaminant Information
| Name | Level Description | Media | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| Barium | Other | Soil | Arsenic was detected from 1.9 - 8.8 mg/kg, typical of background concentrations in the area. No anthropogenic source was identified. |
Control Type
| Type | Details |
|---|---|
| No ICs Required |
Requirements
| Description | Details |
|---|---|
| Advance approval required to transport soil or groundwater off-site. |
There are no documents for this site report.
No associated sites were found.