Final Record of Decision: Decision Summary, Omaha Lead Site

Final Record of Decision: Decision Summary, Omaha Lead Site

Omaha Lead Site Remediation Plan

This document gives an overview of the situation at the Omaha Lead Site as it was seen by the EPA. One important part of this document is its Site history section. This section pinpoints the ASARCO facility located at 500 Douglas Street from the early 1870s-1997 as a major source of lead contamination in the Omaha Lead Site. It also specifically notes that the Aaron Ferer lead smelter and lead battery recycling, later operated by Gould, was also a major source of lead pollution. Both of these facilities emitted lead particulates into the atmosphere, which was then deposited on the ground in the surrounding area. Based on this evidence of pollution by these facilities, the EPA tried to take various enforcement actions to hold the companies in compliance with CERCLA regulations. In response to the high levels of lead found in the blood of children living in the area, the EPA asked ASARCO to perform soil removal at child-care centers and residencies in the contaminated area, but ASARCO refused, even after an Administrative Order was issued. After this refusal, the EPA took action on its own, but continued to try to hold ASARCO responsible for their actions, as well as three other potentially responsible parties: Union Pacific, Gould, and Aaron Ferer. In most cases, these parties refused to cooperate with the EPA, including on the performance of an RI/FS, requests for payments for costs and performance of work. When these parties refused to cooperate, the EPA issued further Administrative Orders in an attempt to hold the parties responsible. However, the parties continued to refuse to comply, forcing the EPA to procede with the remediation of the Omaha Lead Sight using money from Superfund, rather than from the responsible parties.

This document is significant for multiple reasons. First of all, it gives specific evidence and justification about why the EPA chose the potentially responsible parties that they did, as gives a better idea about what actions they pursued against the parties early on in the remediation of the Omaha Lead Site. Additionally, this documents the potentially responsible parties active strategies to attempt to escape responsibility for the pollution they put into the environment. This establishes the justification for the legal action the EPA took against these companies later on, and is significant in understanding the overall effort that was put in by the EPA took make the responsible parties pay for the remediation of the pollution they placed into the environment.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region VII

EPA.gov

US Environmental Protection Agency

May 2009

PDF Document

English

US EPA Archive Document

FINAL RECORD OF DECISION
DECISION SUMMARY
OMAHA LEAD SITE
OPERABLE UNIT NUMBER 2

PDF Document