TECHNICAL DEVELOPMENTS COLUMN Method for Allocating Soil and Groundwater Contamination at Complex Sites

摘要

There are few published reports of allocation methodologies for contamination at complex sites not associated with the traditional Superfund landfill scenario. Allocation is difficult when the contamination is among neighboring facilities and comprises intermixed multimedia plumes and impacts resulting from a long period of operations. Such was the situation in a lawsuit brought by Solvent Chemical in the United States District Court for the Western District of New York (New York v. Solvent Chem. Co. Inc., 685 E Supp. 2d 357 (W.D.N.Y.)). Solvent Chemical, an owner and operator of a chlorinated benzene facility in Niagara Falls, New York, that had also been used as an unlicensed hazardous waste facility operated by a subsequent owner of the facility, had sought damages for impacts to soil from a neighboring plant that had been a major chloralkali and chlorinated benzene facility. The neighboring plant, owned by Olin Corporation for the past 100 years, had used a large amount of mercury in the process of manufacturing chlorine and caustic soda. Solvent alleged that much of this mercury was deposited at Solvent from air emissions at Olin. Solvent had also pursued claims against Olin and DuPont (a neighboring chlorinated solvent manufacturer) as upgradient contributors of pollutants to a groundwater remediation system Solvent managed. The groundwater system included a shallow overburden and a deeper bedrock remediation system. Olin and DuPont claimed that they were not responsible for these groundwater impacts.