Public Health Assessment for ARMCO Incorporated - Hamilton Plant, New Miami, Butler County, Ohio, June 27, 2005. EPA Facility ID: OHD074705930

摘要

The ARMCO site is located in New Miami, Butler County, Ohio. The ARMCO facility began operations as a steel mill around the turn of the century and ceased operations in 1982. Most of the on-site buildings were demolished by 1989. In 2003, the former ARMCO facility was proposed for inclusion on the National Priorities List (NPL) for Uncontrolled Hazardous Waste Sites. The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) is required by Congress to complete a public health assessment for sites proposed for listing on the NPL. Since 1990, the Health Assessment Section (HAS) of the Ohio Department of Health has had a cooperative agreement with ATSDR. As part of this agreement, HAS agreed to conduct the public health assessment for the ARMCO site. Initial environmental investigations began at the site in 1988 and continued through 1993. Samples collected at the site include on-site soil and sediment samples, in addition to groundwater samples from on-site production wells and nearby municipal drinking water supply wells. Analytical results from the various sampling events indicate that soils and sediment on the site were contaminated with elevated levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). In addition, several metals were detected in on-site scrubber sludge piles above expected background levels. None of the groundwater samples collected contained site-related chemicals at levels of health concern. However, there is a landfill located on the northeast portion of the site, and groundwater conditions around the landfill have not been fully characterized. The primary concern for exposure at the site is the possibility that chemicals from the site may have migrated through the soil and impacted the groundwater supply in the area. Two municipal drinking water supply wells and several residential drinking water wells are in the vicinity of the site. Although groundwater on the site has not been found to contain chemicals at levels of health concern, the potential for exposure can not be determined until the extent of the contamination at the site has been fully characterized. Another pathway of concern is the potential for contaminated leachate and surface water runoff to enter the Great Miami River which borders the entire eastern edge of the site. This runoff could potentially contaminate river surface water or sediment and could possibly be ingested by aquatic life and pose a threat to fishermen or others who eat fish caught in the Great Miami River. Currently the ARMCO site poses an Indeterminate Public Health Hazard to the residents in the vicinity of the site. To determine whether residents living near the site or visitors to the site may possibly be exposed to hazardous chemicals at levels of health concern, environmental conditions at the site must be fully characterized.