Hazardous Waste Cleanup: BASF Corporation in Williamsburg, Virginia
On this page:
- Cleanup Status
- Site Description
- Contaminants at this Facility
- Institutional/Engineer Controls
- Land Reuse
- Site Responsibility
Cleanup Status
Since 1989, BASF has been investigating the contamination at the site under the authority and oversight of the EPA and the oversight of Virginia's Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) Office of Hazardous Waste (OHW) and Office of Remediation Programs (ORP), and under the oversight and authority of the DEQ's Voluntary Remediation Program (VRP) and DEQ's State Water Control Board (SWCB). BASF entered into a VRP Agreement with the DEQ on June 24, 1997 for several parcels of the site that were not subject to other regulatory programs. In addition, specific parcels of the site, such as the former wastewater treatment plant and the main landfill area/dredge spoils area, have been initially addressed under the authority of DEQ's SWCB under several Administrative Consent Orders.
The last SWCB Consent Order was terminated on January 6, 2006, by the DEQ, as BASF had satisfied their obligations of the Orders. The site-wide Corrective Action investigations and evaluations of the developed areas of the BASF site further established the nature and extent of contamination in all media and the rate of migration of contamination of groundwater from the developed portions of the site. The site-wide Corrective Action investigation and evaluation also incorporated a comprehensive risk assessment to evaluate potential risk to human health and the environment of all impacted media from the developed parcel areas.
A final Decision and Response to Comments was issued on October 7, 2020 which was implemented through the VRP in which the majority of the site was enrolled at the time of the remedy decision and remaining parcels were subsequently enrolled. The remedy requires: 1) concurrence with a DEQ approved Long Term Stewardship Plan which includes a groundwater monitoring plan, Operations and Maintenance Manual (O&MM) and institutional and engineering control plan, and 2) implementation and compliance with land use controls in the form of a deed restriction. The VRP Certificate of Satisfactory Completion of Remediation (CSR) and Declaration of Restrictive Covenants for the Area 2 – Truswood Property was recorded on August 25, 2021, and the CSR and Declaration of Restrictive Covenants for the remainder of the BASF property was recorded on September 21, 2021.
Cleanup Status
The Truswood Property (Area 2), a sub-parcel within the larger BASF facility property boundary, is subject to the RCRA Corrective Action Program in accordance with a Facility Lead Agreement signed in January 2005. BASF does not currently own the Truswood property. The remainder of the site is owned by BASF and is enrolled in the Virginia Voluntary Remediation Program (VRP) through a 1997 VRP agreement and subsequent enrollment of additional parcels (4B and 4C). The Truswood property (Area 2) was enrolled in the VRP program to implement the Corrective Action remedy in 2021.
Two of the undeveloped parcels (Areas 1C and 1E) received no further action status with respect to groundwater and soil from EPA and DEQ, while other parcels have received no further action status with respect to soil (Areas 1A, 1B, and 1D). EPA issued a Final Decision and Response to Comments Document (FDRTC) on October 10, 2008 with respect to these areas.
Since 2010, environmental activities in Area 4C have been conducted in accordance with the RCRA Corrective Action Program with oversight by the DEQ Office of Remediation Programs.
Additionally, portions of the site phase (Areas 2, 3A, and 3C- 1 Manufacturing Area) that have previously undergone active groundwater remediation are currently in a DEQ-approved monitored natural attenuation (MNA) program that require annual groundwater monitoring and reporting. The various groundwater monitoring programs were integrated into the VPDES 2013 Groundwater Monitoring Plan, which was subsequently updated and approved by DEQ in 2020 and serves as the Sites Long Term Groundwater Monitoring plan.
DEQ issued a Final Decision Response to Comments on October 7, 2020 which is being implemented through the VRP Program under VRP0073, VRP01030, and VRP01039.
Site Description
Interactive Map of BASF Corporation, Williamsburg, Virginia
View larger mapThe BASF, Williamsburg, Virginia site is located in James City County, Virginia approximately one mile west of the point where U.S. Route 60 passes through the community of Lee Hall. The site is bounded on the west by the James River, on the east by Wood Creek, and on the south by undeveloped land, wetlands, and Skiffes Creek. The Site occupies approximately 700 acres, with manufacturing facilities limited to approximately ten percent of the total site area. The developed portion of the site is approximately 303 acres. Approximately 397 acres of the property is considered undeveloped. The company manufactured acrylic fibers, acrylic spun yarns, and anti-static non-filament yarns for use in apparel and home furnishings.
The site was initially developed by Dow Chemical in 1958 for the production of acrylic fibers. BASF
acquired the Site in 1978 and continued production of acrylic products until 1989, when Mann Industries
(Mann) purchased the industrial portion of the facility. Mann maintained production of acrylic fibers until
1993, when Mann filed a Chapter 7 bankruptcy petition and the bankruptcy receiver transferred a lien
against one of Mann’s parcels to BASF and sold two other parcels to Virginia Commonwealth Textiles
(VCT). The production facility has been inactive since 1993 and has largely been dismantled. In 2000, VCT filed a Chapter 7 bankruptcy petition, and the two VCT properties were purchased by Truswood
Properties, which later sold them to Colonial Penniman. In 2017, CNB Properties, Inc. acquired the two
VCT properties. In 2004, BASF repurchased the portion of the manufacturing property covered by its lien
associated with the Mann bankruptcy to control the remediation of the property, which has been
underway since the 1990s. The remainder of the site continues to be owned by BASF and is presently
being considered for redevelopment.
Contaminants at this Facility
The main contaminants known to be present include benzene, 1, 1-dichloroethene, 1, 4-dioxane, cis-1, 2-dichloroethene, tetrachloroethene, vinyl chloride, and zinc.
Institutional and Engineering Controls at this Facility
The remedy requires the following institutional controls.
a. Area 4B (Main Landfill Area) and Area 4C (former WWTP) shall not be used for residential purposes.
b. Columbia Aquifer groundwater at the property shall not be used for any purpose except to conduct the operation, maintenance, and monitoring activities required by EPA and the DEQ, unless it is demonstrated to EPA and DEQ that 1) such use will not pose a threat to human health or the environment or adversely affect or interfere with the selected final remedy, and 2) EPA and DEQ provide prior written approval for such use.
c. No new wells shall be installed on the property in the Columbia aquifer unless EPA or DEQ provide prior written approval to install such wells.
d. Subsurface soil excavation at Area 4A – North Landfill Area, Area 4B – Main Landfill Area, and Area 4C – WWTP is prohibited except in conformance with an appropriate soil management plan that includes a health and safety plan.
Land Reuse Information at this Facility
The facility is currently not being used or is undeveloped.
Site Responsibility at this Facility
RCRA Corrective Action activities at this facility are being conducted under the direction of the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality with assistance from EPA Region 3.