Kotzebue Former Hospital-School Pipeline Release

Site Narrative

Site History

The Indian Health Service and Bureau of Indian Affairs operated a hospital and school in Kotzebue before Alaska was even a State. The hospital and school were heated by a system of tanks and above and underground pipelines that went throughout the school and hospital properties. During the 1960s there were reports of ruptures and leaks from the pipeline. Fuel seeped into the school (now elementary school) basement, ditches, and local wells.

DEC contracted Shannon and Wilson to conduct an environmental site assessment in 1989 to sample the beach, soil, and water, and inventory all remaining tanks. Through the years, multiple sampling and inventory events have occurred:

2008: Local Kotzebue residents noticed a sheen on the ocean of Kotzebue Sound. As a result, DEC contracted an environmental consultant to resample the contaminated beach, soil, and water.

2015: The Indian Health Service collected soil and water samples across all four lots of the original school and hospital property.

2018: The Northwest Arctic Borough sampled the air in June Nelson Elementary School for any fuel vapors.

2019: The project partners did a desk top inventory of all known tanks and pipelines at the site.

Current Status

The Indian Health Service and Maniilaq Association funded the removal of an old underground storage tank from the Northside of the Ferguson building in August 2019. Workers excavated the tank, dug up 16 cubic yards of petroleum contaminated soil, and transported the soil to the Kikiktagruk Inupiat Corporation (KIC) landfarm for treatment. During this effort, the Indian Health Service and Bureau of Indian Affairs funded groundwater sampling. Samples collected from ten monitoring wells found petroleum contamination in the groundwater at eight wells. DEC provided guidance throughout this project and the Native Village of Kotzebue provided logistical support.

The Indian Health Service and Maniilaq Association funded groundwater monitoring and landfarm operations again in 2022.  Groundwater monitoring occurred at eight of the ten existing wells onsite installed by Maniilaq Association, located on Lots 3, 4 and, 5 as well as Tract 4A. Two wells were monitored for free product (fuel floating on surface of water table), Wells MW1 and MW6. Excavated soils from 2019 and 2020 are currently being treated at the KIC landfarm. Results from groundwater monitoring wells are pending.

At the KIC Base Road landfarm, soils excavated in 2019 were sampled to determine if contaminant levels had decreased below DEC Method Two Table B2 Soil Cleanup Levels. Soils excavated in 2020 were not sampled due to elevated field screening levels indicating soils required additional tilling prior to additional sampling. Analytical results for the 2019 soils are pending.

Additional information will be provided as more details become available from the 2022 field season. Final work plans for the 2022 field season are included for public viewing.