Federal Superfund Sites in Connecticut
Acronyms Used
Barkhamsted-New Hartford Landfill
Barkhamsted (North Central Remediation District)
Most recent Five Year Review: 2018
More Info: Barkhamsted-New Hartford Landfill
Beacon Heights Landfill
Beacon Falls (Northwestern Remediation District)The Beacon Heights Landfill site covers 34 acres on an 83-acre property in southeastern Beacon Falls. Between 1920 and 1979, the landfill was used for the disposal of industrial and municipal waste, including oils, chemical liquids, sludges, solvents, rubber, and plastics. Landfill operations included open burning, along with burial of non-combustibles. The site was listed on the NPL in 1983. The site is in a rural residential area. Homes in the area are now served by public water, which was extended in 1989 after several private drinking water wells were found to be contaminated. The site was capped by the responsible parties, the Beacon Heights Coalition, in 1995. Continuing activities conducted by the Coalition include regular groundwater monitoring and reporting, leachate monitoring (at the point of discharge to the sanitary sewer line) and reporting, regular inspections, and operation and maintenance of the cap. The PRPs are currently working on implementing institutional controls for this site.
Most recent Five Year Review: 2018
More Info: Beacon Heights Landfill
Durham Meadows
Durham (Eastern Remediation District)
The Durham Meadows NPL Site is located on Main Street in Durham and includes the Durham Manufacturing Company (DMC), the former Merriam Manufacturing Company (MMC) and groundwater contamination in the surrounding area. Chlorinated solvents and 1,4-dioxane released by these two metal box manufacturers have contaminated soil, groundwater, and polluted or potentially polluted over 100 private wells. These homes have been provided with Granulated Activated Carbon filtration systems and some are provided with bottled water for 1,4-dioxane contamination.
Remedial actions at this site include soil removal at both MMC and DMC and extension of public water from the City of Middletown. EPA remediated the former MMC site by excavation and off-site disposal of contaminated soils. The restored property was subsequently sold to a new owner. EPA will remediate soil at the DMC site once federal funding becomes available.
The construction of the water main extension from Middletown began in September 2019. DMC and the State of Connecticut continue to provide treatment systems and bottled water to those with contaminated wells until the properties are connected to public water. EPA posts updates on the water line project at Water Line Construction Progress Reports.
More Info: Durham Meadows
DEEP Current Projects: Durham Meadows
Gallup’s Quarry
Plainfield (Eastern Remediation District)
Gallup's Quarry is a 29-acre abandoned gravel pit in a rural, residential area on Tarbox Road in Plainfield. In the 1970s, the site accepted chemical wastes without a permit. DEEP and the Connecticut State Police removed waste drums and contaminated soils from the site in 1978. EPA added the site to the NPL in October 1989. No soil contamination remains on site at concentrations greater than State remediation standards. Several volatile organic compounds remain in groundwater on the site and at several downgradient properties at concentrations greater than State remediation standards, but no drinking water wells have been affected. The 1997 ROD selected monitored natural attenuation and recording of environmental land use restrictions (ELURs) as the remedy for the groundwater. The PRPs continue to monitor groundwater, soil, and surface water to assess the progress of cleanup. ELURs have been recorded for the site and downgradient properties. A wood-burning power plant is operating at the site and DEEP has entered into a Covenant Not To Sue with the site owner.
Most recent Five Year Review: 2017
More Info: Gallup's Quarry
Kellogg-Deering Well Field
Norwalk (Southwestern Remediation District)
The Kellogg-Deering Well Field Superfund Site in Norwalk was added to the National Priority List (NPL) in 1984. The site was proposed for addition to the NPL after the Norwalk First Taxing District detected solvents in their drinking water wells. The primary contaminant of concern at this site is trichloroethylene (TCE). When TCE was detected in the public drinking water wells, the wells were shut down until adequate treatment could be installed. Once added to the NPL, EPA identified the source area and required the responsible parties to investigate and remediate the sources of pollution that were impacting the Kellogg-Deering Well Field. In 1996, the remedy for the source areas became operational. The remedy includes a groundwater pump-and-treat system, which prevents the TCE-contaminated groundwater from impacting the well field, and a soil vapor extraction (SVE) system. The SVE system operated until 2000 to reduce the concentration of TCE and other solvents from the soil. In 2006, soil that remained on-site and that was deemed a risk to groundwater quality was excavated and disposed off-site. The groundwater remedy continues to operate. A plan is under review by EPA for the relocation of the groundwater treatment system to another location on-site as part of proposed site redevelopment. In addition, EPA is evaluating the potential for indoor air pollution resulting from groundwater pollution on nearby properties.
Most recent Five Year Review: 2017
More Info: Kellogg-Deering Well Field
Laurel Park Landfill
Naugatuck (Northwestern Remediation District)
The Laurel Park Landfill site occupies approximately 20 acres of a 35-acre parcel in southern Naugatuck. The landfill has been in existence since the late 1940s, and several industries disposed of solvents, oils, hydrocarbons, chemical and liquid sludge, chemical solids, tires, and rubber products there. The facility continued to operate as a municipal landfill until 1987. The surrounding area varies from suburban to rural residential. Homes in the area are now served by public water, which was extended in 1989 after private drinking water wells were found to be contaminated. The site was listed on the NPL in 1983. The site was capped in 1997 by the responsible parties, the Laurel Park Coalition. Ongoing activities include groundwater monitoring, inspections, and monitoring of leachate discharges. The Coalition is currently working on implementing institutional controls for this site.
Most recent Five Year Review: 2018
More Info: Laurel Park Landfill
Linemaster Switch
Woodstock (Eastern Remediation District)
The 92-acre Linemaster Switch Corporation site is located in a rural, largely residential area on Plaine Hill Road in Woodstock. The company has manufactured electrical and pneumatic foot switches and wiring harnesses since 1952 and remains in active operation. Trichloroethylene (TCE) was released to soil beneath and adjacent to the factory building, resulting in contamination of soil and groundwater. The TCE released from the site has caused contamination of the drinking water well serving the site and of drinking water wells at several adjacent properties. An air stripper is used to treat water from the onsite well and to provide a potable source of water to the site.
EPA added the site to the NPL in 1990. In July 1993, EPA selected a remedy including the use of a groundwater pump and treat system to prevent contaminated groundwater from flowing off the site toward adjacent properties. That system has helped to contain the spread of contaminated groundwater, however, in 2014 TCE was found in a couple of private wells south of the site. The site owner is maintaining filtration systems on those wells. Environmental Land Use Restrictions to limit the use of groundwater on the site and several adjacent properties were recorded on the Woodstock land records in 2005.
Additional investigations were performed in 2017 to better characterize contaminant migration in the deep bedrock south of the site and provide current characterization of VOCs within the source area soil. This information is being used to evaluate options to improve source control and management of contaminant migration.
Most recent Five Year Review: 2019
More Info: Linemaster Switch
Naval Submarine Base
Groton/Ledyard (Eastern Remediation District)
The 687 acre base is located in Groton and Ledyard and consists of over 300 buildings. The Navy has owned the site since 1866 and has based submarines at the site since 1916. The base also houses medical and training facilities, submarine maintenance facilities, housing and recreational facilities, as well as command and administrative functions.
The Navy has been addressing soil, groundwater, surface water, and sediment contamination at the site since 1980 under various Department of Defense (DoD) cleanup programs. The base was added to the NPL in August 1990. The Navy is addressing approximately 25 separate sites within the base under CERCLA and under the DoD Installation Restoration Program. The Navy removed contaminated sediments from a number of wetlands, restored the wetlands, and instituted active invasive plant control measures. Impermeable caps have been installed over three onsite landfills. Institutional controls to prevent groundwater use and to prevent excavation of certain areas have been implemented. Contaminated sediment along the river has been largely removed, and any remaining contamination has been covered, with land use controls to prevent disturbance. Sampling of area wells for potential PFAS contamination began in September 2019.
Most recent Five Year Review: 2016
More Info: Naval Submarine Base
Additional Information: Naval Facilities Engineering Control NSB-NL
Precision Plating
Vernon (North Central Remediation District)
Precision Plating has operated from 1970 to the present at the 17.7 acre Hillside Industrial Park at 1050 Hartford Turnpike. Precision Plating is a small metals finishing facility that generates chromium related waste and wastewater. In 1979, an Aboveground Storage Tank and three 55 gallon drums containing chromium waste were damaged behind the Precision Plating building, releasing their contents. The area surrounding Precision Plating is rural and residential, with the properties near the site relying on private drinking water wells. A Consent Order was issued in 1986 to excavate contaminated soil, install monitoring wells, and provide potable water to affected residences. The site was listed on the NPL in 1989. The municipal water system has been extended to all impacted residences. Following significant soil removal, chromium still exists at high concentrations in the groundwater, indicating the entire source has not been removed. EPA plans additional investigation of the groundwater contamination.
More Info: Precision Plating
Raymark Industries
Stratford (Southwestern Remediation District)
Raymark Industries manufactured friction products such as brakes and clutches from about 1919 through 1989 at its factory at 75 East Main Street. The manufacturing process included the mixing of asbestos, heavy metals and resins to form the friction material used in brake pads, clutches and gaskets. Waste generated in the manufacturing process was collected in on-site lagoons. As a lagoon filled, flow was diverted to another and the full lagoon was dewatered and excavated. Excavated waste was used to fill low laying portions of the property and offered as fill off-site, which was used at numerous areas in Stratford.
In the mid 1990's waste was excavated from 46 residences and a school, brought back to the factory site, and an impermeable cap was installed over the waste. The site has been redeveloped into Stratford Crossing Shopping Center. EPA is excavating waste from Ferry Creek (OU3) and scattered sites throughout Stratford (OU6) and moving the waste to the former Raybestos Ballfield (OU4), where an impermeable cap will be installed over the waste (see livecam link below). Preparation of the ballfield began in late 2019 with excavation of the OU6 sites ongoing. When completed, the former ballfield will be suitable for redevelopment.
High levels of trichloroethylene (TCE) vapors had been detected in a primarily residential area between Ferry Blvd. and the Housatonic River. DEEP installed sub-slab depressurization systems (SSDS), similar to those used for radon, at approximately a hundred residences in 2004 and added approximately twenty additional properties in 2018 and 2019.
EPA is updating Remedial Investigations at the Housatonic Boat Club, along Shore Road, wetlands along the Housatonic, Short Beach Park, and the Stratford and Bridgeport Landfills. The updated Remedial Investigations, Feasibility Studies, Proposed Plans and Record of Decisions, are anticipated in 2020 and 2021.
More Info: Raymark Industries
Stratford Health Department Raymark webpage
former Raybestos Ballfield livecam
DEEP Current Projects: Raymark
Scovill Industrial Landfill
Waterbury (Northwestern Remediation District)
The Scovill Industrial Landfill consists of 30 acres in western Waterbury, off Meriden Road. The Scovill Manufacturing Company used this area as a landfill from 1919 to the mid-1970s for disposal of ash, cinders, demolition debris, and other wastes it generated. The surrounding area is densely developed with mixed commercial and residential uses. The site itself is similarly developed, except for the northern 7 acres, known as the Calabrese parcel, which is currently vacant. The Calabrese parcel was being developed in 1989 when industrial wastes were exposed, leading to DEEP orders and a DEEP removal action in 1998. The site was listed on the NPL in August 2000. Saltire, Inc. (successor to Scovill) began the remedial investigation (RI) in 2004, the RI and Feasibility Study were completed by EPA following Saltire’s bankruptcy. The Record of Decision was signed in 2013, and the Remedial Design was finalized in 2016. The primary soil contaminants at the site are PAHs and metals, with PCBs and VOCs present in localized areas. Significant groundwater contamination has not been found. Public water is available to the site and all surrounding properties.
More Info: Scovill Industrial Landfill
Solvents Recovery Service
Southington (Northwest Remediation District)
The Solvent Recovery Services of New England (SRSNE) received and re-processed millions of gallons of spent solvents and waste petroleum fuels from 1955 to 1991. Faulty operating practices resulted in significant contamination, potentially contributing to the shutdown of two nearby public water supply wells in 1979 and 1980. The site was listed on the NPL in September 1983. Investigation and remediation continue to be conducted by a group of Responsible Parties consisting of companies that shipped wastes to SRSNE. Groundwater containment systems to intercept and treat contaminated groundwater at the site continue to be operated. In 1999, remaining structures at the site were decontaminated and razed.
In 2005, EPA issued a Record of Decision and entry of the Consent Decree by the United States District Court in 2009 triggered the start of remedial design activities. Successful in-situ thermal treatment of the former operations area, shown above, was completed between 2013 and 2015, resulting in the removal of nearly 500,000 pounds of waste oils and solvents. Over 99.5% of the oil and solvent contamination was removed from the soil within that 1.75-acre area.
In 2017, construction of a protective, waterproof, multi-layer cap designed to cover the former operations area and consolidate polluted soils excavated from five other areas onsite was completed. The cap was constructed to allow safe passage of the Farmington Canal Heritage Trail across it. A ribbon cutting ceremony (shown above) was held in September 2017 formally opening the new segment of the recreational trail between Curtiss Street and Lazy Lane and also marking substantial completion of remediation at the SRSNE site.
In September 2018, a solar array was installed on the cap that will help power the existing groundwater containment wells. As a result of the thermal treatment in the former operations area, the groundwater pumped from the site now meets standards that are acceptable for discharge to the Southington municipal water treatment system rather than being continually treated at the site. On-going site activities involve long-term groundwater monitoring. A pilot study using zero-valent iron and liquid activated carbon to treat PFAS and VOCs began in 2018 and is ongoing.
Most recent Five Year Review: 2020
More Info: Solvent Recovery Services
Additional information: www.srsnesite.com
Yaworski Waste Lagoon
Canterbury (Eastern Remediation District)
The Yaworski Waste Lagoon is located on Packer Road in a rural area of Canterbury, in the floodplain of the Quinebaug River. The lagoon is located adjacent to the Yaworski Landfill State Superfund Site, but the landfill is not part of the Federal NPL site. From about 1948 to 1973 the lagoon received drummed material and bulk wastes including textile dyes, solvents, resins, acids, caustics, still bottom sludge, and solvent-soaked rags. After 1973, the lagoon was dewatered and backfilled. Flammable liquid waste was burned in several pits in the lagoon area until 1965, when the Connecticut Department of Health ordered a halt to on-site burning of waste. The site was the subject of several federal and state enforcement actions and was added to the NPL in 1983. Chlorinated solvents from the lagoon flow under the Quinebaug River and have been detected in shallow groundwater on farmland across the river from the site. Contaminated groundwater from the site has not affected any drinking water wells.
In 1988, EPA selected a capping remedy for the lagoon. The lagoon was covered with an impermeable cap in the summer of 1990, and a permanent vegetative cover was added in 1991. DEEP is responsible for the operation and maintenance of the cap using state funds. In 2011, DEEP assumed responsibility for groundwater monitoring that had been performed by EPA. DEEP conducts groundwater monitoring three times per year, generally in April, July, and October. In 2011, the owners of three properties across the Quinebaug River recorded environmental land use restrictions under state law to prevent the use of groundwater in the area affected by site contamination. EPA and DEEP have negotiated with the owners of the site to record similar restrictions on the property where the lagoon is located. DEEP is working with EPA to ensure that these restrictions meet state requirements.
Most recent Five Year Review: 2017
More Info: Yaworski Waste Lagoon
Please note: deleted NPL Sites (Cheshire Groundwater Contamination Site, Cheshire, Nutmeg Valley Road Site, Wolcott, and Revere Textile Prints Corp. Site, Sterling, Old Southington Landfill, and the Broad Brook Mill) are no longer included on this page.
Content last updated May 10, 2020