Problems/Comments

Nike Site Love ("Site E") was part of the Nike Hercules guided missile air defense system deployed in 1959 to protect Alaskan military bases and cities. The site was inactivated in 1970 and the land subsequently obtained by the Cook Inlet Regional Corporation as part of ANCSA. The Battery Control facility is indicated to be in section 26 and lat./long on Site Address tab represents its coordinates. Launch Site coordinates listed as 64 deg., 59', 05" North lat., -147 deg., 53', 10" W. long. This 1,276.39-acre site is situated on the Murphy Dome Road and just north of the headwaters of O'Connor and Hattie Creeks, in Sections 23 and 24 of T2N, R2W, Fairbanks Meridian. Improvements: numerous buildings, towers, and other improvements supporting the anti-aircraft missile launching facility. It was considered destroyed by vandals and weather in 1984. Tract A (1,060 acres) was withdrawn for the Army from the public domain by PLO 1641 of 22May58, as the Ladd Defense Area, Nike Battery "E". An additional 216.38 acres (Tract B) were acquired from BLM by 44LD513 notation (serial number 020505) in Public Land Records dated 5Nov58, as amended 14Dec61. A Notice of Relinquishment was sent to BLM on 4Nov71 and all but 100 acres were scheduled for conveyance to Cook Inlet Region, Inc. (CIRI), in 1984. This site was visited by the Alaska District in October 1979 and found to be "totally destroyed by vandals and the elements." A report by the General Accounting Office in 1980, "Protection and Prompt Disposal Can Prevent Destruction of Excess Facilities in Alaska", provided descriptions and photos of this site in its deteriorated condition. The Army had reported the site in "good condition" when it closed the site in 1971. Remediation was initiated in 1986 by the Army Corps of Engineers under the Formerly Used Defense Site (FUDS) Program. ***Updated September 2011*** 1985 The document Hazardous Waste Identification, Characterization, and Disposal- Nike Sites Jig, Love and Bay prepared by Harza Engineering Company (October 1985) indicated that two site investigations took place in 1985. Diagrams of sample locations included in this report identify USACE sampling points as well as contractor sampling points. Samples collected under this effort included surface soil, hydraulic fluid, storage tank contents, soil acidity, and tank/piping insulation. Target analytes included PCBs, petroleum products, chlorinated solvents, acid residues, lead, and hydrocarbons. The documents reports finding lead and hydrocarbon contaminated surface soil, as well as surface soil with a high acidity concentration. 1986 Building Demolition and Debris Removal (BD/DR) activities occurred during 1986, however no records or report are available at ADEC. According to the 1998 Preliminary Assessment conducted by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), documentation of samples collected from contaminated soil excavation and removal activities, or a report summarizing 1986 BD/DR activities do not exist. A summary of the 1986 BD/DR activities from the 1998 Preliminary Assessment document reveals: • Fuel tanks were removed from the ground, however no confirmation sampling took place • Asbestos containing material was transported to the Fairbanks North Star Borough Landfill. • A group of transformers was located on the ground at an unknown location were removed. Soil samples were taken, however “results identified unspecified compounds at levels below cleanup criteria.” 1998 In 1998 the EPA completed a Preliminary Assessment Report for Nike Site Love. This investigation collected limited surface soil samples for site screening purposes. Target analytes included Polynuclear Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs), PCBs, and Total petroleum Hydrocarbons (TPH). The document reports PCB and TPH detections in the surface soil. The report also identifies the surface water pathway as the greatest potential impact to receptors. 1999 In May 1999 the ADEC received a Draft No Further Action Report (NFAR) for Nike Site Love. This report requested ADEC concurrence that no further action was needed to protect human health and environment at this site. 2002 In 2002 ADEC issued a letter response to the USACE NFAR. This letter provided numerous comments on the NFAR requesting additional information, clarification, and revision. Because of the potential data gaps remaining in site characterization, ADEC was unable to determine if site closure was appropriate for Nike Site Love. This letter has been included as an attachment to this correspondence. 2006 In 2006 ADEC conducted an environmental records review for Nike Site Love at the request of the USACE. This letter states that the current information available for the site is not sufficient for site closure, and requested further investigation as a result of some of the findings of the data review. The results of this file review are summarized in a letter to the USACE dated November 2, 2006. This letter is also included as an attached to this correspondence. 2009 In November 2009 the department received a public complaint regarding potential military debris and contamination surrounding the Nike Site Love location. Email correspondence from ADEC was sent to the USACE requesting follow-up information and additional investigation at this site. USACE response to this email indicated that this was a low priority site, and that steps to identify the areas of concern identified by the complaint would be planned. A copy of this email chain is included as an attachment to this correspondence. 2011 On July 29, 2011 ADEC CS Section received another call from Mr. Anderson requesting information regarding the status of activities planned to clean up the contamination and debris he pointed out in his 2009 complaint. He also mentioned concern about contamination originating from Nike Site Love potentially affecting his private drinking water well, as well as the surrounding surface soil and surface water ingested by his sled dogs. In response to this complaint, ADEC CS Staff has taken the following steps: • Contacted USACE FUDS Program representatives Ron Pflum and Kenneth Andraschko on July 29, 2011 regarding the status of planned cleanup activities at the Nike Site Love. On August 4th, 2011 ADEC was informed that are currently no additional cleanup activities planned at this site. • ADEC paper and electronic files on Nike Site Love were reviewed to determine the site status and clarify current site conditions. Findings from this review are summarized below. • On August 1, 2011 CS Staff, Amanda Loomis and David Robinson, conducted a site visit to document the public concerns related to this site. During this site visit CS Staff also provided Mr. Anderson with the Division of Public Health’s informational material on the contaminants with which he was concerned, contact information to ADEC Drinking Water Section, and documentation tracking his complaint. • On August 8, 2011 CS Staff returned to Mr. Anderson’s residence to sample his drinking water well. Target analytes included polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and metals. • Prepared a letter summarizing complaint, records review, and findings from site visit for the USACE. The current land owner appears to be Cook Inlet Regional Corporation.

Action Information

Contaminant Information

Control Type

Requirements

No associated sites were found.