| Action Date |
Action |
Description |
DEC Staff |
| 3/23/2007 |
Site Added to Database |
Site added to the database. |
Mitzi Read |
| 3/27/2007 |
Exposure Tracking Model Ranking |
Initial ranking. |
Lisa Maserjian |
| 6/18/2007 |
Meeting or Teleconference Held |
See meeting notes under the OTOO1 sitewide entry. |
Lisa Maserjian |
| 9/15/2008 |
Site Characterization Report Approved |
Approved the August 2008 Final Site Characterization and Remedial Investigation Report, Jacob estimates that approximately 317 cy of POL and 340 cy of PCB contaminated soil will need to be removed from this area located north of the site access road. Most of the PCB and POL contaminated soil is co-located. |
Kim DeRuyter |
| 3/20/2009 |
Long Term Monitoring Established |
Staff met with the Air Force and their contractor to discuss a Tech Memo, and the path forward for the North River Radio Relay Station site. The Air Force proposed further excavation and off site disposal for this site. |
Kim DeRuyter |
| 9/13/2010 |
CERCLA ROD Approved |
A Record of Decision (ROD) was signed on September 13, 2010. The ROD describes the Air Forces proposed remedy for this site as excavation and offsite disposal. The goal of the proposed remedial action is to completely remove PCB contaminated soil above 1.0 mg/kg. The Method 2 Ingestion cleanup levels are the proposed cleanup level for POL contaminated soil. The remedial action is scheduled for 2011. |
Kim DeRuyter |
| 7/14/2011 |
CERCLA Remedial Design/Remedial Action Plan Approved |
The Quality Assurance Project Plan has been submitted and is currently under revision to incorporate the Departments comments. The plan for SS003 is excavation and off site disposal of PCB and petroleum and PCB co-mingled contamination. The excavation will continue until all contaminants concentrations detected in confirmation samples have met the cleanup level. The site will be graded to fit the surrounding contours. |
Kim DeRuyter |
| 12/8/2011 |
Update or Other Action |
Due to unforseen delays, the Area A cleanup work described in the 2011 work plan was not initiated in 2011. The cleanup is anticipated to commence in 2012 provided funding is available. |
Kim DeRuyter |
| 3/23/2012 |
Update or Other Action |
Project manager changed from DeRuyter to Dooley. |
Rebecca Bryan |
| 5/24/2012 |
Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other |
ADEC recieved the draft PCB Soil Removal QAPP Revision 1 on May 14 and sent comments on May 23. A removal action is planned for all contaminated soil above cleanup levels. |
Meghan Dooley |
| 3/27/2014 |
Update or Other Action |
PCBs above cleanup levels remain on bedrock in Areas A and C at depths of 8 to 19 feet bgs; ROD amendment will be needed to allow site closure with ICs. March 27, 2014, meeting between ADEC, USAF, and Jacobs. In this meeting it was decided that the ROD amendment process will be undertaken in 2015. A work plan will be drafted for work to be conducted during the 2014 field season and a community meeting will be scheduled to get community input on the draft. The work plan will include: 1) installing groundwater monitoring wells at Area C and conducting GW sampling; 2) removing 1,2,4-TCB from two grids and a bedrock ridge, if possible, in Area C; 3) excavation of the floor of grid 31I in the WACS area for remaining PCBs;backfilling Areas A and C; 4) further investigation for DROs and RROs at the drum site south of the cabin; 5) removing contaminated soils from the VMF area and land farming them at the WACS site; and 6) transporting the 640+ super sacks down to Unalakleet. |
Meredith Savage |
| 5/6/2014 |
Meeting or Teleconference Held |
Public meeting held at 1:00pm in the Village of Unalakleet to discuss data from 2013 field season and field work proposed for 2014. Attending: Meredith Savage-ADEC,Robert Johnston-USAF, Jennifer Anderson and Forrest Janukajtis-Jacobs Engineering. Discussion was held with community members regarding the information that PCB concentrations above ADEC Table B1, Method 2 cleanup levels still remain onsite at bedrock level at Area A and Area C. Community members voiced concern over the potential that those PCBs would migrate down gradient via groundwater and indicated they would like to see cleanup at site continue. Community members also asked that vegetation be sampled for PCBs. It was agreed that although Areas A and C are at bedrock, additional cleanup efforts would take place this summer, as well as installation of groundwater monitoring wells. Vegetation sampling would be considered. |
Meredith Savage |
| 5/13/2014 |
Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other |
ADEC approves as final North River Radio Relay Station 2013 Cleanup Report for PCB- and POL Contaminated Soils. |
Meredith Savage |
| 7/14/2014 |
Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other |
Provided comments on Soil Delineation and Drum Removal Work Plan Addendum, received electronically on 7/01/2014. The work plan a)proposes additional sampling in the location of a 55-gallon drum that was found (and removed) from near Area C in August of 2013, and b)proposes to sample and remove any other USAF drums found in the general area of the site. |
Meredith Savage |
| 7/29/2014 |
Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other |
Received the draft Vegetation Sampling Work Plan Addendum to the North River Radio Relay Station Cleanup Plan for PCB-Contaminated Areas. The work plan describes the project approach and methodology for sampling vegetation ant Site SS001 (Area C) and SS003 (Area A). |
Meredith Savage |
| 8/4/2014 |
Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other |
Comments provided the draft Vegetation Sampling Work Plan Addendum to the North River Radio Relay Station Cleanup Plan for PCB-Contaminated Areas. |
Meredith Savage |
| 8/7/2014 |
Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other |
Received final Soil Delineation and Drum Removal Work Plan Addendum to North River RRS Cleanup Plan for PCB-Contaminated Areas; work plan approved as final. |
Meredith Savage |
| 8/7/2014 |
Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other |
Received final Vegetation Sampling Work Plan Addendum to North River RRS Cleanup Plan for PCB-Contaminated Areas; work plan approved as final. |
Meredith Savage |
| 5/20/2015 |
Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other |
The Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation (ADEC) received an electronic copy of the document titled 2014 North River Radio Relay Station Site Activities Technical Memorandum on May 19, 2015. The document describes the vegetation sampling, drum investigation, and excavation activities at the North River Radio Relay Station (RRS) site during the 2014 field season.
Vegetation sampling was conducted to address concerns raised by the community of Unalakleet about the potential for polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) contamination in vegetation and to evaluate the potential for transmission through the food chain. Samples were collected from the roots, leaves, and fruits of various plants in the vicinity of the Site SS003 (Area A) excavation, in the vicinity of the Site SS001 (Area C) excavation, and along the ATV trail to the recreational cabin located to the southeast of the Area C excavation. Of the 111 total samples, 88 of the samples had no detection of PCBs and the remaining samples had detections that were less than the PCB soil cleanup level of 1 mg/kg. Detections were limited to root samples and one leaf sample; the highest detection was 0.44 mg/kg.
The site of a drum removed in 2013 was sampled for petroleum hydrocarbon contamination. ADEC Method Two Soil Cleanup Levels were exceeded for diesel range organics (DRO) in each of the four samples. Because of suspected biogenic interference (organic matter), a silica gel cleanup was run on the samples and although the results showed that DRO concentrations for the four samples were below soil cleanup levels, a recommendation was made that 1.5 cubic yards of soil be removed from the vicinity of the drum during the 2015 field season and that no further investigation is required.
Analytical results from the 2013 remedial action activities at Site OT001 (WACS) showed one remaining small area of PCB concentration exceeding the 1mg/kg soil cleanup level (a 1.18 mg/kg result). The contaminated soil was removed and confirmation sample results were below the soil cleanup levels for PCB. With this action all PCB-contaminated soil has been removed from Site OT001 (WACS), no further remediation is necessary, and site closure is recommended.
ADEC has reviewed this report and accepts it as final. |
Meredith Savage |
| 6/8/2015 |
Update or Other Action |
Received draft Technical Memorandum titled "Backfill and Restoration for Site SS003 (Area A) and SS001 (Area C)Work Plan, North River Radio Relay Station (RRS). |
Meredith Savage |
| 6/18/2015 |
Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other |
The Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation (ADEC) received an electronic copy of a document titled Backfill and Restoration for Site SS003 (Area A) and SS001 (Area C) Work Plan, North River Radio Relay Station (Final) on June 17, 2015. The work plan describes the project approach and methods to be used to backfill the excavations at Site SS001 (Area C) and Site SS003 (Area A). Contamination with polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) and residual range organics (RRO) remains at bedrock approximately 17 feet below ground surface (bgs) at Area A. Concentrations of the remaining PCBs exceeding the cleanup level of 1 mg/kg range from 1.1 to 320.30 mg/kg, and the concentration of the remaining RRO exceeding the cleanup level of 10,000 mg/kg is up to 41,000 mg/kg. Due to depth and presence of fractured bedrock, no further excavation was recommended for Area A. Contamination with PCB and 1,2,4-trichlorobenzene (TCB) remains in Area C at approximately 10 feet bgs (on floor-PCB) and 8 feet bgs (on sidewalls-TCB). Concentrations of PCBs exceeding cleanup level range from 3.58 to 119.05 mg/kg. The concentration of TCB exceeding the cleanup level of 0.85 mg/kg ranges from 4.8 to 9.4 mg/kg. Excavation at Area C was discontinued due to the presence of groundwater and bedrock. Both sites will be restored to surrounding grade and seeded using an arctic grow mix to aid in minimizing erosion.
ADEC has reviewed this report and accepts it as final. |
Meredith Savage |
| 8/6/2015 |
Update or Other Action |
Transferred entire file (3 large boxes) to Fairbanks on 8/7/2015
Cert Return Receipt # 7015 0640 0006 5878 3860-
7015 0640 0006 5878 3877
7015 0640 0006 5878 3891
|
Susan Carberry |
| 10/30/2015 |
Site Visit |
Conducted site visit of Areas A and C and the VMF in coordination with the Oct 29 public RAB meeting. Area A had been backfilled and graded to match surrounding topography, and a vegetation cap consisting of seeded grass had been partially established prior to the ground freezing. |
Joy Whitsel |
| 7/22/2016 |
Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other |
DEC approved 2015 Site Activities Report, which included the following work at each site:
- OT001 (WACS): construction and maintenance of the landfarm for petroleum, oil and lubricants (POL) contaminated soil.
- SO001 (VMF): excavating POL-contaminated soil and transporting this soil to the landfarm at Site OT001, collection of soil samples, and installation and sampling of groundwater monitoring wells. All groundwater results were below DEC cleanup levels.
- SS001 (Area C): lining and backfilling the existing excavation, drilling, and site restoration; installation and sampling of groundwater monitoring wells. All groundwater results were below DEC cleanup levels.
- SS003 (Area A): lining and backfilling the excavation, drilling, and site restoration; soil sampling. All soil results were less than ADEC cleanup levels, which indicates no contamination is present downgradient. |
Joy Whitsel |
| 9/20/2016 |
Site Visit |
DEC Project Manager (PM) attended public Restoration Advisory Board (RAB) meeting on 9/20 where US Air Force (USAF) and their contractor provided update of work completed in 2016, including landfarming, excavation and stockpiling of approximately 3,000 cy of petroleum-contaminated soil, and groundwater monitoring. On 9/21, the DEC PM, USAF PM, and contractors conducted a field visit to observe the work completed over the summer at the VMF, landfarm, and Area C, and to check on vegetative re-growth at the sites closed with institutional controls – Areas A and B. Re-growth at Area B is robust; re-growth at Area A is patchy due to large amounts of gravel in the surface soil. |
Joy Whitsel |
| 5/18/2018 |
Update or Other Action |
DEC evaluated the draft “Revised Proposed
Plan, North River RRS – Unalakleet, Alaska” dated April 2018 and provided comments to the U.S. Air Force on the document. The proposed plan describes the U.S. Air Force’s intent to amend the September 2010 “Record of Decision, North River Radio Relay Station, Alaska” so that soil contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and petroleum, which
could not be completely removed, can remain onsite. DEC requested that the U.S. Air Force obtain written concurrence from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that the PCBs could remain onsite. |
Melinda Brunner |
| 5/22/2018 |
Meeting or Teleconference Held |
DEC (Brunner) attended a public meeting convened by the U.S. Air Force (USAF) in Unalakleet. The public meeting was convened to discuss the "Revised Proposed Plan, North River RRS - Unalakleet, Alaska" dated May 2018 |
Melinda Brunner |
| 5/22/2018 |
Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other |
DEC approved the "Revised Proposed Plan, North River RRS - Unalakleet, Alaska" dated May 2018 on May 22, 2018. The document describes the describes the U.S. Air Force’s (Air Force) intent to amend the September 2010 “Record of Decision, North River Radio Relay Station, Alaska” so that soil contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and petroleum, which could not be completely removed, can remain onsite in the fractured bedrock, covered with a permeable liner and minimum of eight feet of clean fill to prevent exposure and migration. The 2010 Record of Decision (ROD) indicated all soil with PCB concentrations above the cleanup level (1 milligram per kilogram and petroleum constituents above their respective cleanup levels would be excavated and shipped off the installation for disposal in a landfill located in the contiguous United States. This has been done to the extent practicable at both Sites SS001 (Area C) and SS003 (Area A); however, the selected remedy described in the 2010 ROD did not account for the volume and extent of contamination that has been identified at the Sites SS001 or SS003, nor did it anticipate the presence of fractured bedrock. The proposed change of leaving contamination onsite above the Method Two cleanup levels as described in 18 AAC 75.341 is a fundamental change from the 2010 ROD, hence the need to present the revised remedy to the public for comment. |
Melinda Brunner |
| 5/23/2018 |
Site Visit |
DEC (Brunner) conducted a site visit to SS001, SS003 and OT001 with R. Johnston of the U.S. Air Force. The landfarm containing contaminated soil from SO001 at OT001 showed signs of minor stormwater runoff to the surrounding land that the USAF shall address. The contaminated soil stockpile from SO001 currently located atop SS001 had a damaged top cover that the USAF shall replace/repair. |
Melinda Brunner |
| 12/21/2018 |
Update or Other Action |
Site location adjusted by about 40 feet in DEC database following consultation with USAF PM. |
Eric Breitenberger |
| 1/23/2019 |
Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other |
DEC received the Draft North River Radio Relay Station 2018 Site Activities Report, Unalakleet, Alaska, dated January 2019. This report summarizes the site remediation activities during the 2018 field season at the former North River Radio Relay Station. |
Bri Clark |
| 2/5/2019 |
Update or Other Action |
DEC evaluated the “North River Radio Relay Station Record of Decision Amendment, Unalakleet, Alaska, Draft” dated November 2018. The record of decision (ROD) amendment describes proposed revisions to the remedies for Site SS001 and Site SS003, to include leaving residual contamination in place with land use controls implemented to ensure protection of human health and the environment. DEC provided comments on the draft ROD amendment to the U.S. Air Force. |
Melinda Brunner |
| 5/9/2019 |
Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other |
DEC reviewed and had no comments on the “Draft Supplemental Work Plan, 2019 Remedial Action Operations, Land Use/Institutional Control, North River Radio Relay Station, Alaska, Site SO001, SS001, and SS003” dated March 2019.
|
Bri Clark |
| 6/18/2019 |
Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other |
DEC approved the Final Supplemental Work Plan, 2019 Remedial Action Operations, Land Use/Institutional Control, North River Radio Relay Station, Alaska, Site SO001, SS001, and SS003” dated May 2019. The work plan documents IC inspections and proposed groundwater sampling/monitoring of sites SO001 & SS001. IC inspection is planned for site SS003. |
Dennis Shepard |
| 11/18/2019 |
CERCLA ROD Approved |
The Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) provided approval of the North River Radio Relay Station, Record of Decision (ROD) Amendment, Unalakleet, Alaska, Final 2019. The ROD amendment documents a change to the remedy selected for two of the three sites addressed in the 2010 ROD that was signed on 13 September 2010 for Sites OT001 (WACS),SS001 (Area C), and SS003 (Area A) (USAF 2010b). Excavation activities were not able to remove all the contaminants above cleanup levels from the site. The ROD amendment presents the new selected remedy: Offsite Disposal of Contaminated Soil,
Capping, and Land-Use Controls (LUCs), for Sites SS001 (Area C) and SS003 (Area A). |
Dennis Shepard |
| 11/26/2019 |
Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other |
DEC received a Draft 2019 Technical Project Report, North River Sites SO001, SS001 and SS003; The report presents the findings of institutional control inspections and the results of groundwater sampling conducted during the 2019 field season at Sites SO001, SS001 and SS003. |
Dennis Shepard |
| 11/26/2019 |
Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other |
DEC received a Draft 2019 Technical Project Report, North River Sites SO001, SS001 and SS003; The report presents the findings of institutional control inspections and the results of groundwater sampling conducted during the 2019 field season at Sites SO001, SS001 and SS003. |
Dennis Shepard |
| 12/19/2019 |
Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other |
DEC provided review comments for the Draft Technical Project Report, 2019 Remedial Action Operations, Land Use/Institutional Control, North River Radio Relay Station, Alaska, Site SO001, SS001, and SS003 dated November 2019.
The Technical Project Report presents the results of the 2019 Environmental Long Term Management program at North River RRS, Alaska, conducted 17 - 18 June 2019. |
Dennis Shepard |
| 3/5/2020 |
Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other |
DEC approved the Final 2019 Technical Project Report North River RRS, 2019 Remedial Action Operations, Land Use/Institutional Control North River Radio Relay Station, Alaska, Sites SO001, SS001, SS003, March 2020. The Technical Project Report presents the results of the 2019 Environmental Long Term Management program at North River RRS, Alaska, conducted 17 - 18 June 2019. Work was performed for the following three sites: Area A (SS003), Area C (SS001), and Vehicle Maintenance Facility (SO001). |
Dennis Shepard |
| 8/17/2020 |
Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other |
DEC accepted all responses to comments submitted August 3, 2020 on a supplemental work plan developed to address the Institutional Controls (IC) inspections, and groundwater sampling activities associated with the 2020 Long Term Management (LTM) at the North River Radio Relay Station (RRS) Sites SO001, SS001, and SS003, located in Unalakleet, Alaska. |
Dennis Shepard |
| 8/27/2020 |
Risk Assessment Workplan Approved |
DEC provided approval for the Final Supplemental Work Plan, 2020 Remedial Action Operations, Land Use/Institutional Control, North River Radio Relay Station, Alaska, Site SO001, SS001, and SS003” dated August 2020. |
Dennis Shepard |
| 4/2/2021 |
Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other |
DEC provided review comments for the Draft Technical Project Report, 2020 Remedial Action Operations, Land Use/Institutional Control, North River Radio Relay Station, Alaska, Site SO001, SS001, and SS003 dated March 2021. The document presents the results of work performed at North River Radio Relay Station in August and September 2020 to fulfill the inspection and monitoring requirements described in the Land Use Control Management Plan for Sites SO001, SS001, and SS003. |
Axl LeVan |
| 5/25/2021 |
Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other |
Staff provided comments on the Draft 2021 Remedial Action-Operation and Long-Term Management Work Plan, North River Radio Relay Station, Sites OT004, SD003, SS007, ST005, and ST006, April 2021. The document was received on May 5, 2021. The Work Plan describes the approach and procedures for site-specific long-term management and remedial action-operation activities at Sparrevohn long-range radar site, including annual groundwater sampling event at site SO001. The WP covers work being performed over a 5-year period and will be reviewed on an annual basis between field seasons. DEC commented that sampling of SS001 Monitoring Wells should be added to the plan. |
Axl LeVan |
| 8/2/2021 |
Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other |
Staff approved the Final 2021 Remedial Action-Operation and Long-Term Management Work Plan, North River Radio Relay Station, Sites OT004, SD003, SS007, ST005, and ST006, July 2021. The document was received on August 2, 2021. The Work Plan describes the approach and procedures for site-specific long-term management and remedial action-operation activities at Sparrevohn long-range radar site, including annual groundwater sampling event at site SO001. The WP covers work being performed over a 5-year period and will be reviewed on an annual basis between field seasons. DEC noted that a workplan addendum or field change form will be required to address well decommissioning based on the current work plan. |
Axl LeVan |
| 10/7/2021 |
Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other |
DEC reviewed and provided comments on the Draft 2021 CERCLA Five-Year Review for Site SS001 and Second CERCLA Five-Year Review for Site SS003 at the North River Radio Relay Station Unalakleet, Alaska, dated August 2021. The document was received on September 7. The Five-Year Review (FYR) evaluates the implementation and performance of the remedies for the sites in order to determine if the remedies are, and will continue to be, protective of human health and the environment. The FYR covers a period between 6/30/2015 and 9/30/2020. |
Axl LeVan |
| 10/20/2021 |
Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other |
DEC approved review comments for the Final Technical Project Report, 2020 Remedial Action Operations, Land Use/Institutional Control, North River Radio Relay Station, Alaska, Site SO001, SS001, and SS003 dated October 2021. The document presents the results of work performed at North River Radio Relay Station in August and September 2020 to fulfill the inspection and monitoring requirements described in the Land Use Control Management Plan for Sites SO001, SS001, and SS003. |
Axl LeVan |
| 12/17/2021 |
Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other |
DEC reviewed and approved the Final 2021 CERCLA Five-Year Review for Site SS001 and Second CERCLA Five-Year Review for Site SS003 at the North River Radio Relay Station Unalakleet, Alaska, dated December 2021. The document was received on December 16th. The Five-Year Review (FYR) evaluates the implementation and performance of the remedies for the sites in order to determine if the remedies are, and will continue to be, protective of human health and the environment. The FYR covers a period between 6/30/2015 and 9/30/2020. |
Axl LeVan |
| 8/9/2022 |
Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other |
DEC approved the "Final Remedial Action-Operations and Long-Term Management Report, North River Radio Relay Station, Alaska, SO001, SS001, and SS003, August 2022" received on August 9, 2022. This report describes results of the site-specific long-term management (LTM) and remedial action-operation (RA-O) activities at North River radio relay station (RRS), including annual groundwater sampling at site SO001. The report also includes recommendations for future LTM work as part of the five-year work plan. DEC provided comments to USAF. |
Axl LeVan |
| 4/4/2023 |
Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other |
The Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has completed a review of the "2022 Draft Final 2022 Remedial Action-Operation and Long-Term Management Report North River Radio Relay Site, Sites SO001, SS001, SS003, March 2023" received March 22, 2023. This report presents the 2022 annual remedial action-operation and long-term management (LTM) activities conducted between 30 August and 31 August 2022 at the North River Radio Relay Station (RRS). This work included groundwater monitoring at site SO001 and LTM activities at sites SS001, SO001, and SS003. |
Axl LeVan |
