Client
CMC Heartland Partners and U.S. Borax, Inc.
Location
Minneapolis, Minnesota
CMC Heartland Partners and U.S. Borax, Inc. retained Peer to investigate and remediate arsenic and lead contamination at the Lite Yard Superfund Site located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The site adjoins the Hiawatha Avenue/State Highway 55 corridor, and the Hiawatha LRT Line. Mn/DOT acquired the eastern-most portion of the site in late 1990s as part of the Hiawatha Avenue reconstruction. This former industrial site was used for over one hundred years for pesticide manufacturing, bulk petroleum storage, and railroad yard activities.
The presence of multiple contaminants (e.g. arsenic, lead, mercury and petroleum hydrocarbons) and multiple sources of the same contaminants (e.g. lead from pesticide manufacturing and buried battery casings) necessitated the involvement of three different regulatory agencies and compliance with three sets of regulations/guidelines. The regulatory agencies involved on the project included the Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) Agricultural Voluntary Investigation and Cleanup (AgVIC) Program, and the MPCA VIC and Petroleum Brownfields Programs.
Peer designed and implemented two phases of soil remediation at the site. An initial phase of remediation was conducted between fall of 2004 and spring of 2005 to prepare the site for redevelopment, which included excavation and disposal of approximately 80,000 tons of arsenic, lead and petroleum contaminated soil, of which 21,000 tons required chemical stabilization to render it non-hazardous. This initial remediation phase, which included a 28 foot deep excavation, was the largest soil cleanup ever completed under MDA’s oversight.
Following completion of the initial phase of remediation, Ryan Companies purchased the site in fall of 2005 and redeveloped it with a new 60,000 square foot office/warehouse building, a storm water pond, and other related improvements.
A second phase of remediation was conducted concurrently with redevelopment and included segregation and disposal of an additional 3,600 tons of contaminated soil removed during excavations for the new building foundation, storm water retention pond and utilities.
Peer services included completion of treatment studies, a focused feasibility study, a cleanup/operations plan, cleanup plans and specifications, and environmental monitoring, documentation soil sampling, and continuous air particulate monitoring and sampling at the site perimeter during both phases of remediation. Peer also assisted with construction worker monitoring and personal sampling.
Peer is currently conducting post-cleanup ground water monitoring at the site for the new owner.
In January 2007, Peer received an Honor Award for this project from the American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC)/Minnesota as part of the Engineering Excellence Awards (EEA) competition.
Services Provided
- Phase I ESA
- Phase II Investigation
- Feasibility Studies
- Response Action Design
- Response Action Implementation Oversight/Documentation
Awards
- Honor Award—American Council of Engineering Companies of Minnesota