Keystone Corridor Ground Water Contamination Site Indianapolis, Indiana Community Involvement Plan April 2016 Intentionally left blank TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction .........................................................................................................1 Describes the purpose and intended uses of this Community Involvement Plan. Site Overview ......................................................................................................3 Provides the background information including the location and history of the site. Community needs and concerns ......................................................................7 Summarizes what the community members are concerned about, the questions they asked and what they told EPA. Community involvement goals and activities ................................................15 Highlights EPA’s goals, activities and timeline for conducting site-specific activities to keep the public informed and involved during the cleanup process. The Community ................................................................................................19 Provides background information on the city of Indianapolis, profiles the economic and ethnic makeup of the community, and summarizes the community’s history. Appendices Appendix A – Glossary - Initials - Acronyms: Lists the definition of key words, initials and acronyms (words in bold throughout the text are defined in this appendix) Appendix B – List of Contacts: Provides a list of federal, state, and local agencies and neighborhood organizations Appendix C – Community Resources: Identifies places where community members can find more information about the site and possible meeting locations. Appendix D – Community Engagement and the Superfund Process: Gives an overview of the step-by-step process the EPA follows to determine the best way to clean up a contaminated site and opportunities for community involvement throughout the process. Appendix E – Environmental Justice: Describes Environmental Justice and EPA’s commitment to the affected community. i Intentionally left blank INTRODUCTION The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) prepared this Community Involvement Plan, or CIP, to engage and support the community affected by the Keystone Corridor Ground Water Contamination Superfund site hereinafter referred to as the Keystone Corridor site, located in Marion County, Indianapolis, Indiana. This CIP provides information about current If you are interested in submitting comments or community concerns and presents a plan to have questions or suggestions concerning this enhance communication between local residents CIP, please contact: and the EPA as the investigation and cleanup of Heriberto León this site progress. Community Involvement Coordinator This CIP also provides background information EPA Region 5 (SI-7J) about the site and recommends activities for 77 W. Jackson Blvd. the EPA to continue to inform the public and Chicago, IL 60604-3507 local officials about progress at the site and to 312-886-6163 encourage community involvement during the [email protected] site cleanup. The EPA wants the members of the community The CIP is a working document that will evolve to know and understand when and how they as the investigation and cleanup continue can participate in decision-making during and input is received from the community. It is intended to be flexible, adaptable and used the cleanup activities at this site. The EPA is as a guideline for EPA’s communication with committed to promoting effective and meaningful the community. communication with the community and wants to make sure the community’s concerns and information needs are considered as activities at Goals of EPA’s community the site progress. engagement program: » Assist the public in understanding the This CIP describes the EPA’s plan for addressing decision-making process during project community concerns and keeping residents design and cleanup and the community’s informed and involved in cleanup activities. We role in that process will use this document as a guide to communicate » Give the public accessible, accurate, timely with, and involve residents, businesses, and understandable information about the neighborhood organizations and local government project as it moves forward in the Indianapolis area. » Ensure adequate time and opportunity for (Words in bold are defined in Appendix A.) the public to give informed and meaningful input and for that input to be considered » Reflect community concerns, questions and information needs » Respect and fully consider public input throughout the process as the project moves forward 1 Intentionally left blank SITE OVERVIEW This sections provides a brief overview of the background, including location and history, of the Keystone Corridor site. E 49th StE 49th St E 48th StE 48th St Hillside Ave Allisonville Rd E 47th StE 47th St Location and Erie Ave Erie Ave Site Features E 46th StE 46th St E 46th StE 46th St The Keystone Corridor Primrose Ave Marcy Ln Marcy Ln Ground Water Contamination E 45th StE 45th St E 45th StE 45th St E 45th StE 45th St Crittenden Ave Norwaldo Ave Evanston Ave N Keystone Ave site is located approximately Caroline Ave Ralston Ave Kingsley Dr 6 miles northeast of Duke StDuke St downtown Indianapolis, in an E 44th StE 44th St il Old Allisonville Rd ra area that is both commercial y T Clay StClay St kw and residential. The center Fall Creek P of the site is designated as E 43rd StE 43rd St Fall Creek Dr N N Oxford St the intersection of Keystone y kw P Avenue and East Fall Creek ek re E 42nd StE 42nd StC l ll rai N Keystone Ave Parkway North Drive. The a T F y E kw approximate boundaries are P k e Meadows Pkwy e 45th Street on the north, r C l l Eastern Avenue on the east, a F Millersville Rd Eastern Ave Ave Eastern Eastern N Tocoma Ave Tocoma N Ave Ave Temple Temple N N 38th Street on the south, Ave Tocoma N and Norwaldo Avenue on Millersville Rd the west. Fall Creek well E 40th StE 40th St Hillside Ave Hillside field and potential sources Ave Hillside of the ground water E 39th StE 39th St contamination are located Millersville Dr within the site. E 38th StE 38th St E 38th StE 38th St r D N y w k P E 37th StE 37th St Fairfield Ave k e N Tocoma Ave Tocoma N re E 37th StE 37th St Ave Temple N N Oxford St Caroline Ave Caroline C Ave Caroline N Rual St N Rual St ll a F E Sutherland AveE 36th StE 36th St Orchard Ave Ave Orchard Orchard Schofield Ave Ave Schofield Schofield Hillside Ave Ave Hillside Hillside E 35th StE 35th St KEY Map of Keystone Corridor Ground Water Contamination site. The shaded area shows Fall Creekthe approximate site boundary which is located in an area near municipal wells. Municipal Wells E 34th StE 34th St 3 Site Background 2011 and IDEM asked for EPA’s help to finish the cleanup. A site assessment was conducted in 2012 History and cleanup at Tuchman Cleaners began. The site includes an approximate 4,500‑foot long IDEM also conducted an investigation at the by 1,500-foot wide plume or underground mass nearby former Vantage Point Cleaners property, of ground water contaminated with chlorinated which operated as a dry cleaner from 1986 to solvents located near the intersection of East 1997 using and disposing of PCE waste. IDEM’s Fall Creek Parkway North Drive and Keystone investigation showed elevated levels of PCE in Avenue. The plume consists of chemicals called the ground water on the property. volatile organic compounds, or VOCs. The IDEM’s investigations have not determined the chemicals are primarily tetrachloroethene, specific source or sources of contamination at the or PCE; trichloroethene, or TCE; cis-1,2- Keystone Corridor site due to the area’s complex dichloroethene, or cis-1,2-DCE, which is a geology, the number of potential sources, and breakdown product of PCE and TCE; and vinyl the mixing of the contamination. Over 40 known chloride. The sources of the contamination have users or handlers of solvents in the area have not yet been identified. been identified as possible sources. In 1989, elevated levels of VOCs Citizen’s The local water company, Citizen’s were found in soil near the former Water Water, operates 10 active municipal Tuchman Cleaners property, at removed the only identified well with drinking water wells in the Fall 4401 North Keystone Avenue. vinyl chloride above Creek Station well field. VOCs From 1953 until 2008, Tuchman SDWA maximum have historically been found in Cleaners, operating as a dry contaminant level five of the wells. But in only one cleaner, used PCE, generated PCE from service in of the 10 drinking water wells, vinyl waste and had documented PCE 2011. chloride was detected above the Safe releases at the property. Drinking Water Act, or SDWA, maximum Indiana Department of Environmental contaminant level. However, that well has been Management, or IDEM, has investigated removed from service. soil and ground water contamination near the To clean up the chemicals released into the soil property. The site owner also conducted some and underground water supplies at the Tuchman cleanup work from 2003 to 2006; however, the Cleaners property, in September 2012, the EPA Tuchman property remained contaminated. When began a time-critical removal action. The EPA the Tuchman Cleaners’ parent company declared calls the cleanup a time-critical removal action bankruptcy in 2008, all cleanup efforts at the because the pollution posed an imminent threat site stopped. to people. The cleanup included removing soil From 2009 to 2011, IDEM performed additional that posed a direct contact threat (danger from investigations and inspections at the Tuchman touching the soil); backfilling excavated areas; site and surrounding properties which included and transportation and disposal of hazardous Thomas Caterers of Distinction and Purtee material off-site. Plating properties. Elevated levels of PCE and Besides removing the contaminated soil from the TCE were found in ground water and soil. Tuchman Cleaners property, the EPA checked The City of Indianapolis oversaw the demolition nearby residential properties for gases seeping of the Tuchman Cleaners building in November into buildings through cracks and holes in their 4 foundations.