Executive Summary

The remedy for the Bennett's Dump site in Monroe County, Indiana, includcd the removal of PCB contaminated soil to an approved landfill, off-site incineration of capacitors, backfilling of the excavated area with clean fill, placement of a 12-inch soil cover over the excavated area, a small sediment removal in Stout's Creek, and the implementation of institutional controls. The site achieved "construction completion"¹ with the signing of the Preliminary Close Out Report on September 25, 2000. The five-year review is being completed sooner than September 2005, because PCBs continue to be released from springs into Stout's Creek.

The conclusion of this five-year review is that the remedy was constructed in accordance the requirements of the ROD Amendment but the cleanup has not eliminated or reduced PCBs from being released from springs onsite into Stout's Creek. Additional investigation of Groundwater is required and the results of that investigation will determine whether future Groundwater remediation is required. At this time, the U.S. EPA cannot determine whether the remedy is protective of human health and the environment until additional information is available on the site hydrology and a risk analysis is completed, both of which should be completed within eighteen months from the date of this Five Year Review.

Issues:

Erosion control of soil coverj and lack of vegetation in some areas of the soil cover.

Drainage with off-site sUrface water eroding portions of the soil cover.

PCBs being released from springs onsite into Stout's Creek.

Recommendations and Follow-up Actions:

Soil cover was repaired with the placement of new clean fill and liners were placed over the area where water from the springs traveled over the site to eliminate erosion of the soil cover.

Surface water runoff was channeled around the site to prevent water from eroding the surface soil cover.

Viacom is implementing a groundwater investigation and based upon the results, a determination will be made if the ROD Amendment will require modification.

Protectiveness Statement(s):

The continuing release of PCBs from the springs on the Bennett's Dump site into Stout's Creek requires further invcstigatioll. A protectiveness determination cannot be made at this time due to the continuing release of PCBs into Stout's Creek. A Groundwater investigation is underway to obtain the necessary data to evaluate the continuing release of PCBs.

Long-term Protectiveness:

Long-term protectiveness of the remedial action will be verified once the groundwater investigation plan has been completed and a determination is made regarding modification of the Bennett's Dump ROD Amendment.

Other Comments:

Implementation of deed restrictions has been delayed due to the Groundwater investigation underway. The deed restrictions will be reevaluated once a determination is made regarding a modification of the Bennett's Dump ROD Amendment.

1. Introduction

If the President selects a remedial action that results in any hazardous substances, pollutants, or contaminants remaining at the site, the President shall review such remedial action being implemented. In addition, if upon such review it is the judgement of the President that action is appropriate at such site in accordance with section 104 or 106, the President shall take or require such action. The President shall report to the Congress a list of facilities for which such review is required, the rusults of all such reviews, and an actions taken as a result of such reviews.

The agency interpreted this requirement further in the NCP, 40 CFR Section 300.430(f)(4)(ii) states:

If a remedial action is selected that results in hazardous substances pollutants, or contaminants remaining at the site above levels that allow for unlimited use and unrestricted exposure, the lead agency shall review such actions no less often than every five years after the initiation of the selected remedial action.

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA), Region V conducted a five- year review of the remedial actions implemented at the Bennett's Dump site in Monroe County, Indiana. This report documents the results of the review. The Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) and Monroe County Health Department provided support in the development of this five-year review.

II. Site Chronology

III. Background

Physical Characteristics

Bennett's Dump is located approximately 2.5 miles northwest of Bloomington, Indiana in Monroe County. The site is located in a former limestone quarrying area previously known as Bennett's Quarry and is in rural Setting. Stout's Creek is on the west border of the site with quarry access roads to the south and east. Surrounding the site are a number of abandoned quarry pits filled with water and large limestone blocks and rubble. Adjacent land to the west of the site is agricultural. New highway construction for the In 37/46 bypass is occurring to the south and west of the site which may change the current rural setting. See Figure I .

The main area of the Bennett's Dump site is 3.5 acres in size and another smaller area, referred to as the satellite area is located approximately one hundred feet to the east of the main areas. The satellite area is approximately a half-acre in size. A third small area (approximately 30 by 60 feet) 750 feet north of the main area and at the gate was remediated under the original Consent Decree. A 1992 U.S. EPA sampling event for the third area showed no detections of PCBs and confirmed that no further action was required.

Land and Resource Use

The land in the vicinity of Bennett's dump was used for quarrying operations. Bennett's Quarry was privately owned and operated by Edwin Bennett until it was sold to the Star Stone Company in 1987. The quarry is inactive and produced finished building stone and crushed stone. The inactive stone mill is located within 50 feet of the southwest corner of the main site.

The current land use for the surrounding area is a mix of agricultural, commercial, and residential. The main and satellite areas were fenced prior to remediation, but since the completion of the cleanup at those locations, the fence was removed. The Star Stone Company prevents access to its property and the Bennett's Dump site through the use of a gate on the main access road.

The Groundwater aquifer underlying the site is currently not used as a drinking water source. Springs located on the Bennett's Dump site, however, result in Groundwater flowing into Stout's Creek. Frequent fishing occurs about 3.5 miles downstream from the Bennett's Dump site.

History of Contamination

Initial Response

The Bennett's Dump site was first discovered by the Monroe County Health Department in 1983. The Monroe County Health Department requested a site assessment by the U.S. EPA in May 1983. Sampling showed that PCBs were found in large concentrations across the site and based upon the sampling data, an interim remedial measure was initiated by the U S EPA. The interim remedial measures included the following:

• Installation of a locked, 8-foot high chain link barbed wire security fence surrounding the three contaminated areas.
• A total of 252 visible capacitors were removed for off-site incineration and 20 cubic yards of stained soil were excavated and disposed of in an approved off-site landfill.
• A 16 to 22 inch clay cap and 6 inches of topsoil cover were installed over the main site.

The Bennett's Dump site was placed on the National Priorities List in September 21, 1984 and was one of the six sites included in the Consent Decree that was entered with the court on August 22, 1985. The Consent Decree called for the construction of a permitted, TSCA-approved, dedicated, municipal solid waste-fired incinerator to be used to destroy PCB contaminated soils and materials excavated from the six sites.

Public opposition to the incinerator arose before and after entry of the Consent Decree. Applications for the necessary permits to design and build the incinerator were submitted by Viacom in 1991. Beginning in 1991, the Indiana State Legislature passed several laws intended to delay and block the implementation of the incinerator remedy required in the 1985 Consent Decree. In February 1994, the parties agreed to jointly explore, under the operating principles alternatives to the incineration remedy.

A second phase of interim measures began in 1987 pursuant to requirements in the August 1985 Consent Decree. The second phase included installing an additional cap area at the edge of the main site and posting warning signs. Also, in September 1988, Viacom removed sediments along 1,800 feet of Stout's Creek. The contaminated sediment was transported to the Interim Storage Facility at the Winston Thomas site for storage. The contaminated sediments from Stout's Creek and PCB contaminated material from other interim measures at the other Consent Decree sites were subsequently removed to an approved off-site landfill in February 1998 pursuant to time critical removal action.

Based upon the operating principles that were agreed to in February 1994 and the court order requiring completion of source control remedy by December 31, 2000, the U.S. EPA on August 21, 1998, made availiabel to the public the proposed plan for the Bennett's Dump site. The governmental parties concurred on the Record of Decision (ROD) Amendment and the document was signed by the U.S. EPA on October 16, 1998.

Basis for Taking Action

At the Bennett's Dump site, PCBs are the main contaminant of concern. PCBs have been discovered in soil, sediment and in Groundwater. Due to the karst geology, groundwater discharges through a series of springs located on-site. Diesel fuel which contains benzene, toluene, and xylene were also discovered in Groundwater.

IV. Remedial Actions

Remedy Selection

The ROD Amendment for the Bennett's Dump site was signed on October 16, 1998. The objective of the cleanup was to remediate the site to low occupancy/industrial standards for possible reuse. Based upon Groundwater monitoring data prior to remediation, the expectation was that the large source removal would reduce and subsequently eliminate the discharge of PCBs from the springs on the Bennett's Dump site. In addition, the release of PCBs into Stout's Creek since the interim sediment cleanup in 1988 indicated that additional sediment cleanup was required in Stout's Creek.

The major components of the site remedy selected in the ROD Amendment include the following:

1. Excavation and off-site disposal in a permitted, commercial chemical waste/Toxic Substances Control Act landfill of approximately 55,000 cubic yards of contaminated soils containing PCBs in excess of 25 parts per million (ppm) on average.
2. Excavation and off-site incineration in a permitted, commercial incinerator of capacitors containing PCB oil.
3. Long-term Groundwater monitoring and implementation of deed restrictions.

Remedy Implementation

In the August 1985 Consent Decree, Viacom Inc. (formerly Westinghouse Inc. and CBS Corporation) agreed to build a municipal waste fired incinerator dedicated for the destruction of PCB contaminated material from six sites locacted in the Bloomington, Indiana area. It was estimated that 55,000 cubic yards of PCB contaminated material was located at the Bennett's Dump site and was to be treated by the municipal waste fired incinerator. Public opposition to the incinerator arose before and after entry into the Consent Decree. Applications for the necessary permits to design and build the incinerator were submitted by Viacom in 1991. Beginning in 1991, the Indiana State Legislature passed several laws intended to delay and block the implementation of the incineration remedy required in the 1985 Consent Decree. In February 1994, the parties agreed to jointly explore under the Operating Principles alternatives to the incineration remedy for the six sites.

Due to a lack of progress in developing new site remedies, in November 1997, Federal Judge S. Hugh Dillin issued a judicial order stating that the six Consent Decree sites must be remediated by December 1999. Judge Dillin also assigned Magistrate Judge Kennard Foster to oversee the progress of the parties toward meeting the December 1999 deadline. On February I, 1999, Judge Dillin issued another Judicial Order approving and adopting Report and Recommendations of Magistrate Judge and Special Master Kennard Foster which extended the deadline for completion of the source control at the six sites by December 31, 2000. The source control remedies were completed by the December 31, 2000 deadline and Viacom and the governmental parties are in the process of negotiating a global settlement for all the remaining issues for the six Consent Decree sites.

The Remedial Design/Remedial Action (RD/RA) Work Plan for the Bennett's Dump site which contained the design of the cleanup was approved on August 9, 1999. Construction began in mid-August and was the first phase of the cleanup was completed in November 1999. The project involved the following:

• Shipping a total of 36,157 tons of PCB contaminated material greater than or equal to 50 ppm to Environmental Quality Company's Wayne Disposal Landfill.
• Shipping a total of 1,756 capacitors weighing 118.72 tons to Onyx Environmental in Port Arthur, Texas for incineration.
• The site was backfilled with approximately 25,000 cubic yards of clean clay, graded for drainage and seeded for a minimum of 12 inches of clean cover.

The confirmation sampling showed that the aritmetic average of all the resiual sample results was 11.3 ppm PCBs compared to the cleanup level of 25 ppm PCBs. At three locations, the excavation revealed deep quarry pites filled with rubble. The rubble consisted of large boulders and smaller broken pieces of stone mixed with soil. At these locations, capacitor parts and PCB contaminated soils existed above the rubble. The capacitor parts and PCB contaminated soil were removed. During excavation, each of the excavations filled with groundwater that made contact with the rubble. The groundwater had a light sheen in some locations and one sample showed diesel fuel contaminated with PCBs. The water/oil mixture was pumped and treated to allow the excavations to preceed. The three areas may have been locations where capacitors were broken open and the PCB oil was drained onto thc ground surface. Sample taken in the three areas at the bottom of the excavation revealed concentrations greater than thc 50ppm PCB maximum allowable limit. The governmental parties allowed the excavation to be terminated after removing as much material as possible due to the presence of groundwater and the depth of the excavation. The final sampling in the grids where the three areas were located showed residual PCB contamination of 33 ppm, 25.3 ppm and 162 ppm.

Operation and Maintenance

The U.S. EPA and the other governmental parties have been discussing with Viacom the continuing release of PCBs into Stout's Creek through the springs. Viacom has stated that it will do additional investigations on the groundwater but it is not required to complete any additional cleanup work. The U.S. EPA and the other governmental parties do not agree with Viacom's claim. The implementation of additional work, if required, will be discussed in the global settlement. A Groundwater Investigation Plan has been approved by the governmental parties and the information from the investigation will be used to determine if any additional work is required at the site. Draft deed restrictions for the Bennett's Dump site have been submitted to the governmental parties by Viacom but will not be approved until the groundwater investigation has been completed and a determination if additional work is required.

V. Progress Since the Last Five-Year Review

VI. Five-Year Review Process

Administrative Components

Community Involvement

The U.S. EPA notified Michael Baker of COPA, through correspondence dated February 11, 2002 that a five-year review was going to be completed for the Bennett's Dump site. A discussion took place at the CIC meeting on November 19, 2002 describing the five-year review process. In addition, a notice was placed in the Bloomington Herald Times stating that a five-year review was being conducted. During the CIC meeting, a number of community members expressed concern regarding the continuing release of PCBs into Stout's Creek and the protectiveness of the site remedy. On February 22, 2002, the U.S. EPA received through E-mail a letter from COPA urging the parties to complete a hydrogeologic investigation at the site.

Document Review

Data Review

The October 16, 1998 ROD Amendment called for the excavation of the Bennett's Dump site to 25 ppm PCBs and the placement of a one-foot soil cover over the former dump. The cleanup achieved an 11.3 ppm PCB concentration on average. The U.S. EPA and the other parties believed that the levels of PCBs in the groundwater at the site would decrease to acceptable levels due to the large scale source removal. Based upon the pre-remediation Groundwater data, the U.S. EPA expected that PCB contaminated seeps or springs would be reduced or eliminated. The monitoring conducted after the construction completion has shown that the PCBs in the springs at the site have neither been reduced nor eliminated, but instead continue to be released from the springs into Stout's Creek. The U.S. EPA also reviewed information from early site visits and investigations in an effort to better understand what may be causing the current unexpected releases to Stout's Creek.

In 1984, an aerial photography analysis was completed which showed 1939 photographs of the quarries where the PCB contamination was discovered at depth in the 1999 remediation. The quarries were part of a complex of large quarry pits that extended toward the satellite area and Icebox Quarry. The aerial photographs also show that there are a number of quarry pits upgradient of the Bennett's Dump site to the east and south that have since been filled in.

Groundwater and Surface Water Monitoring

Monitoring has consisted of sampling monitoring wells, Stout's Creek (both upstream, downstream, and the west branch of Stout's Creek), and all flowing springs. Table 2 shows the historical groundwater monitoring data and Charts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 show a graphical representation of the historical groundwater/surface water sampling data.

During the remediation activities in 1999, the PCB levels in groundwater increased due to the cleanup activities but concentrations have dropped since the completion of the cleanup activities, however, the data does not show an overall decreasing trend at this time. Post-remediation PCB levels in groundwater monitoring wells and springs have still shown PCB contamination. The groundwater/surface water data has produced variable PCB analytical results and does not show an overall decreasing trend. Due to the release of PCBs from the springs into Stout's Creek and the road construction surrounding the site which has affected Groundwater, Viacom has agreed to investigate the hydrogeology of the Bennett's Dump site to further understand how the hydrogeology surrounding the site is affecting on-site springs. The Groundwater Investigation Plan was approved on April 22, 2002, and includes the following objectives:

• Further define the site hydrogeology and recharge area to understand the relationships between the groundwater elebations, water levels in the open quarry pits and spring flows at the site.
• Obtain enought datat to estimate the mass loading of PCBs to Stout's Creek under varying hydrologic conditions by determining the water flows and PCBs levels of various springs.
• Determine the impact of the 1 37/ 4(' highway construction on the local site Groundwater flow. As part of the highway construction, water filled quarry pits were filled and surface water run off flows were modified. These changes have affected the Bennett's Dun1p site groundwater levels and spring flows.

Site Inspection

VII. Technical Assessment

Question A: Is the remedy functioning as intended by the decision documents?

Question B: Are the exposure assumptions, toxicity data, cleanup levels, and remedial action objectives used at the time of the remedy selectino still valid?

The land use at the Bennett's Dump site is expected to remain classified as industrial/commercial. The new 37/46 bypass may increase development in the surrounding area which could be a mix of industrial and residential development. Because the release of PCBs are continuing into Stout's Creek, human health and ecological routes of exposure or receptors may have changed in a way that could affect the protectiveness of the remedy but this is unknown at this time. The new 37/46 bypass and the drainage from the new highway has affected the hydrogeology since the surrounding quarries are being used to store drainage from the highway. Understanding how the Groundwater flows in and around Bennett's Dump is a critical part in determining if additional work is required to address the continuing release of PCBs from Bennett's Dump into Stout's Creek.

The toxicity factors and contaminant characteristics have not changed in a way that could affect the protectiveness of the remedy. In addition, risk assessment methodologies have not changed in a way that could affect the protectiveness of the remedy.

Expected Progress Towards Meeting the Remedial Action Objectives

The remedy implemented for the Bennett's Dump site is not progressing as expected. Even though Groundwater was contaminated prior to remedy implementation, the excavation to industrial/commercial PCB standards was expected to reduce and eventually eliminate the PCBs from the springs on the Bennett's Dump site. Monitoring data has not shown a reduction in PCB concentrations in Groundwater since the cleanup was completed.

Levels greater than 0.1 ppb PCBs have been detected periodically downstream in Stout's Creek. The detections are greater than the National Ambient Water Quality Criteria as described in 40 CFR 129.105. See Chart 1.

Question C: Has anv other information come to fight that could call into question the protectiveness of the remedy?

The continuing release of PCBs into Stout's Creek from the springs on the Bennett s Dump site could affect the protectiveness of the site remedy. Scheduled investigations will produce additional information which could call into question the protectiveness of the remedy.

X. Protectiveness Statement(s)

VIII. Issues

IX. Recommendations and Follow-up Actions

XI. Next Review

¹The term "construction completion" refers to sites where physical construction has been completed. This tenm is in contrast to "site completion" which refers to sites where all cleanup actions have been implemented and cleanup goals have been achieved. At such sites, operation and maintenance are the only activities remaining.

^2. The global settlement will include both technical and non-technical issues. Technical issues such as water remediation and sediment remediation remain to be addressed at Lemon Lane Landfill, Neal's Landfill and Bennett's Dump. Non-technical issues include the recovery of costs incurred by U.S. EPA and the governmental parties and compensation for natural resource damages.