EPA Adds Southeast Hennepin Area Groundwater and Vapor Site in Minneapolis, Minnesota to the Superfund National Priorities List, Taking Action to Address Risks to Public Health and Build a Better America
CHICAGO (March 17, 2022) – Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the Southeast Hennepin Area Groundwater and Vapor site will be added to the Superfund National Priorities List (NPL) of contaminated sites that pose significant human health and environmental risks. Cleaning up contaminated sites is important for the health, safety, and revitalization of communities.
“No community deserves to have contaminated sites near where they live, work, play, and go to school. Nearly 2 out of 3 of the sites being proposed or added to the priorities list are in overburdened or underserved communities,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “EPA is building a better America by taking action to clean up some of the nation’s most contaminated sites, protect communities’ health, and return contaminated land to safe and productive reuse for future generations.”
"Today's addition of the Southeast Hennepin Area Groundwater and Vapor site to the NPL demonstrates our commitment to protect the people who live and work in the Minneapolis communities near the contaminated groundwater,” said EPA Regional Administrator Debra Shore. “We will continue to build a better America by working with our state and local partners to use our federal resources to clean up this site.”
“Federally listing the SE Hennepin Groundwater and Vapor site represents a critical next step to cleaning up and addressing contamination in the SE Como neighborhood,” said Minnesota Pollution Control Agency Assistant Commissioner Kirk Koudelka. “Placement on the EPA’s National Priorities List will bring additional resources to protect human health and the environment.”
"Contamination on this site was first detected more two decades ago. I'm grateful the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency worked with the EPA to include this site in its National Priorities List of hazardous waste sites finally making it eligible for federal financing for remedial cleanup,” said City of Minneapolis Ward 1 Council Member Elliott Payne. “As we reckon with the insidious legacy of our industrial past, especially in Minneapolis's first ward, my commitment to climate justice is stronger than ever. I look forward to working with the EPA and engaging my ward 1 neighbors throughout this process."
Thousands of contaminated sites, from landfills, processing plants, to manufacturing facilities exist nationally due to hazardous waste being dumped, left out in the open, or otherwise improperly managed. President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will accelerate EPA’s work to help communities clean up these contaminated sites with a $3.5 billion investment in the Superfund Remedial Program and reinstates the Superfund chemical excise taxes, making it one of the largest investments in American history to address legacy pollution. This historic investment strengthens EPA’s ability to tackle threats to human health and the environment, and EPA has already set action in motion to clear the backlog of the 49 contaminated sites which had been awaiting funding to start remedial action.
With this Superfund NPL update, the Biden-Harris Administration is following through on its commitment to update the NPL twice a year, as opposed to once per year.
The Southeast Hennepin Area Groundwater and Vapor site consists of a vapor plume contaminated with volatile organic compounds (VOCs), primarily trichloroethylene (TCE), from several known and unknown sources. The site was identified when a groundwater and vapor plume was found to be migrating towards the General Mills/Henkel Corp. NPL site. The surrounding area has been developed into commercial and industrial operations since the 1930s. Former and current operations include a foundry and outdoor motor manufacturing, metal finishing and dry-cleaning operations that may have used VOCs. A gravel pit also operated in the northern portion of the site where suspected disposal occurred until approximately 1977. Residential properties are located along the southern portion of the site and the area south of Hennepin Avenue is predominantly residential homes.
MPCA has managed site contamination for several years under a variety of state programs, both voluntary and enforcement driven, but has been unable to effectuate a comprehensive investigation and clean-up. Several facilities in the study are in the state’s voluntary cleanup program. The state of Minnesota referred the site to the EPA due to the potential impacts, size, scope and complexity of the site and the need for further investigation and clean-up.
Background
The NPL includes the nation's most serious uncontrolled or abandoned releases of contamination. The list serves as the basis for prioritizing EPA Superfund cleanup funding and enforcement actions. Only releases at sites included on the NPL are eligible to receive federal funding for long-term, permanent cleanup.
EPA adds sites to the NPL based on a scientific determination of risks to people and the environment, consistent with the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act and the National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan. Before EPA adds a site to the NPL, a site must meet EPA’s requirements and be proposed for addition to the list in the Federal Register, subject to a 60-day public comment period.
Superfund cleanups provide health and economic benefits to communities. The program is credited for significant reductions in both birth defects and blood-lead levels among children living near sites, and research has shown residential property values increase up to 24 percent within three miles of sites after cleanup.
Further, thanks to Superfund cleanups, communities are now using previously blighted properties for a wide range of purposes, including retail businesses, office space, public parks, residences, warehouses, and solar power generation. As of 2021, EPA has collected economic data on 650 Superfund sites. At these sites, there are 10,230 businesses operating on these sites, 246,000 people employed, an estimated $18.6 billion in income earned by employees, and $65.8 billion in sales generated by businesses.
For information about Superfund and the NPL, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/superfund
For Federal Register notices and supporting documents for NPL and proposed sites, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/superfund/current-npl-updates-new-proposed-npl-sites-and-new-npl-sites