Consent for Access to Property W/Attachments
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EPA Region 5 Records Ctr. 257294 CONSENT FOR ACCESS TO PROPERTY Name : Address of Property: Bloomington, Indiana 47404 I consent to officers, employees, contractors, and authorized representatives of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) entering and having continued access to this property for the following purposes: To excavate a sinkhole located on your property and enter the cave system, if possible, to determine how croundwater flows and influences the Neal's Landfill Superfund site. I realize that these actions taken by U.S. EPA are undertaken pursuant to its response and enforcement responsibilities under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act of 1980, as amended, 42 U.S.C. §§ 9601-9601-9675 (2001) . This written permission is given by me voluntarily, on behalf of myself and all other co-owners of this property, with knowledge of my right to refuse and without threats or promises of any kind. Date Property Owner Sinkhole Investigation Plan PSARA-BLOOMINGTON TECHNOLOGIES, INC Re: Cleanout and Investigation of Sinkhole on Sarber Property Background and Purpose The Sarber property is located on the south side of S.R. 48 roughly opposite the southeast corner of the Neal's Landfill site. A sinkhole now filled with brush, trees, trash and debris is located a few hundred feet south of the Sarber residence on the east side of a gravel drive. It has been reported that Mrs. Sarber's Grandfather and an Uncle entered the sinkhole sometime back in the 1930s. They reportedly entered through a near vertical shaft at the mouth of the sink and observed a flowing underground stream at or near the base of the shaft, some 40-ft. below the ground surface. From there they were able to walk some distance along the stream. Later, after the entry and brief exploration, they reportedly blocked the entrance to the sinkhole with a white stove or refrigerator and covered it with trash and brush. The purpose of this investigation is to make the sinkhole accessible for re-entry, to confirm or disprove the presence of an underground stream, to determine the flow direction and other attributes of the stream if it exists, and otherwise to explore the sinkhole/stream system as far as is practical and safe. The sinkhole has been dye-traced and shown to be connected to the Northwest Spring System at Neal's Landfill. Scope of Proposed Activities The proposed investigation consists of three parts: 1) the cleanout of the sinkhole at the ground surface to ascertain the feasibility of entry, 2) entry and exploration of the sinkhole, and 3) closure of the sinkhole entrance to prevent unauthorized or accidental entry. This Preliminary Investigation Plan deals only with Part 1 (cleanout and assessment) and Part 3 (closure). A proposed scope of work for Part 2, entry and exploration, will be prepared after Part 1 has been completed and the feasibility of entry has been evaluated. The scope of initial cleanout and assessment will involve the joint efforts of several parties including Viacom, PSARA Technologies, the US EPA, Earth Tech, the Monroe County Health Department, and the Monroe County Solid Waste District. Key elements of the plan are the disposition of the brush and trees, as well as the household and other trash/debris that is removed from the mouth of the sinkhole. For the brush and trees, it is proposed that these materials be stockpiled beside the sinkhole for replacement over the mouth of the sinkhole as part of final closure. For the trash and debris, arrangements have been made by the Monroe County Health Department to provide a roll-off container for disposal at no cost to the project. Pan 1 Approach The following is a listing of tasks to be performed during the first part of this three-part investigation. The initial clean-out, feasibility assessment and disposal of wastes is expected to take 2 to 3 days. Given the low-lying location of the sinkhole, to the extent possible, the clean-out work should be scheduled for a relatively dry period. • Obtain written permission from the property owner • Plan to photograph and document all aspects of Part 1 • Spot a roll-off container on Sarber property beside the sinkhole Mobilize a small excavator with a grapple to handle trees and brush, and a small bucket for the removal of soil and rock once the trees and brush have been removed Remove and segregate trees, brush and debris; stockpile trees and brush and place trash and debris in roll-off Once trees, brush, trash and debns have been removed, construct a temporary security closure consisting of orange construction fence around the open sinkhole and/or a steel traffic plate placed over the sinkhole opening. Transport filled roll-off container to the Monroe county landfill for disposal Viacom, PSARA and Earth Tech will then assess the feasibility of entry including further excavation that may be required. If entry is deemed feasible, proceed with the development of an Entry Plan that will include a brief Entry and Exploration Safety Plan. If entry is not feasible, proceed with the development of a Permanent Closure Plan. Part 3 Approach Following the completion of cleanout (Part 1) or the entrance/exploration of the sinkhole (Part 2), the sinkhole will be closed to prevent unauthorized or accidental entry. The method of closure will involve the placement of a farm gate (or other similar gate structure) over the mouth of the sinkhole. The gate will be anchored at all four corners (anchor bolts in concrete-filled post hole). If the sinkhole exploration was successful and further exploration or other testing is anticipated, the gate will be fitted with a locking hinge- type anchor on one end so that the gate can be opened. After the gate has been secured, light brush will be placed on top of the gate to hide it from casual observation and minimize the chance of vandalism or other disturbance. The construction of the farm gate (or similar type gate) closure will be done so as not to impede or materially alter natural storm drainage that may now flow into the sinkhole. • Prepare a written summary of all activities and findings for distribution to the property owner and the government parties involved. HEALTH AND SAFETY PLAN HYDROGEOLOGIC INVESTIGATIONS AT SARBER SINK NEAL LANDFILL, BLOOMINGTON, INDIANA Background The Neal's Landfill site is a closed, inactive, waste disposal site located about 4.5 miles west of Bloomington in Monroe County, Indiana (Figure 1). The site is located north of Indiana State Road 48 in a rural area, and occupies about 18 acres. The area was used for industrial and municipal waste disposal from about 1950 until 1972, and disposal practices at the site included open burning of discarded materials. In 1966 and 1967, numerous capacitors filled with polychlorinated biphenyl (PCS) containing oil, PCB-contaminated rags, sawdust, and filter clay generated at the Westinghouse Electric Corporation (now Viacom) plant in Bloomington were disposed of at the site. The Ne;al Landfill site was listed on the National Priorities List (NPL) in October 1981. In 1985, EPA, the State of Indiana, Monroe County, the City of Bloomington, and Westinghouse (now Viacom) signed a Consent Decree requiring Viacom to remediate Neal Landfill and five other PCB sites in the Bloomington area. In 1987, a number of interim measures were completed at the site, including removal of capacitors from the ground surface, removal of a total of 4,500 linear feet of contaminated sediment from receiving streams, (Conard's Branch and Richland Creek), and installation of a soil cap over the primary landfill area. The site is located in a karst terrane characterized by numerous sinkholes, springs and caverns. Karst springs draining the landfill area, referred to as the Northwest Spring System, continue to be contaminated with PCBs. The primary underflow discharge point for this spnng system is South Spring (Figure 1). Interim remedial measures have included the construction of a spring treatment facility (STF) at South Spring. The STF began operation in 1990, but only treats spring flows up to 450 gallons per minute (gpm). The karst drainage basin discharging at the Northwest Spring System is estimated to be approximately 360 acres in size and peak flow rates from the PCB contaminated springs are in excess of 12,000 gpm. Further remedial actions for ground water are now being directed, in part, toward delineation of the surface and subsurface flow pathways feeding the Northwest Spring System and methods to reduce or bypass peak flow through the karst system to the STF. Project Scope The Sarber Sink is located on the south side of S.R. 48 roughly opposite the southeast corner of the Neal's Landfill site. Ground water tracer tests have clearly shown that the sink is directly connected to the Northwest Spring System at Neal's Landfill, and that it is located in an upstream, or upgradient, position with respect to the landfill within the karst drainage basin. The sinkhole, now filled with brush, trees, trash ar d debris, is located a few hundred feet south of the Sarber residence on the east side of a gravel drive. It has been reported to the US EPA and Viacom that Mrs. Sarber's Grandfather and an Uncle at one time entered the sinkhole through a near vertical shaft at the mouth of the sink and observed a flowing underground stream at or near the base of the shaft, some 40 feet below the ground surface. From there, they were able to walk some distance along the stream. Later, after the entry and brief exploration, they reportedly blocked the entrance to the sinkhole with a white stove or refrigerator and covered it with trash and brush to prevent further entry.