CHICAGO, June 27 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency Region 5 today notified Dow Chemical Co. that it
must immediately start cleanup of three dioxin-contaminated hot
spots downstream of its Midland, Mich., facility on the
Tittabawassee River.
The action is being taken using the Comprehensive Environmental
Response, Compensation and Liability Act of 1980 and requires that
Dow and EPA negotiate the final terms of three administrative
consent orders for the cleanup within 15 days and start field work
by August 15.
EPA has documented that dioxin contamination in soil poses risks
to human health and the environment. Cleanup must take place in a
significant portion of the Upper Tittabawassee River this
construction season.
In late November 2006, Dow identified dioxin hot spots along the
first six miles of the Tittabawassee River contaminated with levels
up to 87,000 parts per trillion, far in excess of state and federal
requirements. The areas of concern are subject to flooding and
erosion that could spread the contamination.
Dow's corrective action work under its 2003 Michigan Resource
Conservation and Recovery Act license has taken too long, prompting
EPA to require the following actions.
-- Development of a removal plan, including field sampling. --
Excavation and/or dredging of soil, bottom deposit, sediment,
submerged sediment, riverbank and floodplain soil to an EPA-approved
cleanup level. -- Cut-back and stabilization of river bank. --
Proper disposal of all dioxin-contaminated material, including
water. -- Re-vegetation of floodplain areas with native plants,
backfilling and erosion control. -- Sampling and chemical analysis
as removal progresses. Dow has five days to respond to EPA's notice
letter.
The Dow facility is a 1,900-acre chemical manufacturing plant
located in Midland, Mich. Dioxins and furans were byproducts from
the manufacture of chlorine-based products. Past waste disposal
practices, fugitive emissions and incineration at Dow have resulted
in on- and off-site dioxin and furan contamination. Contamination of
the Saginaw Bay Watershed extends over 50 miles into Saginaw Bay.
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
