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Five Points groundwater plume added to EPA's Superfund list

Release Date: 09/19/2007
Contact Information: Peggy Linn, 303-312-6622, [email protected]

(Denver, Colo. -- Sept. 19, 2007) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has added the Five Points PCE Plume site -- an area of groundwater contamination near Woods Cross City, Utah -- to the National Priorities List (NPL) of Superfund sites. The groundwater plume is located near the intersection of 1500 South and State Highway 106, extending to the west-northwest. This announcement was published in the Federal Register today.

The Five Points PCE Plume site consists of a groundwater plume of tetrachloroethylene (PCE), also called perchloroethylene or "perc," which is used as a dry cleaning agent and metal degreaser. The groundwater contamination lies primarily under Woods Cross City, which has four municipal water wells near the area.

The water supplied by the City is safe to drink and is routinely monitored to ensure drinking water standards established by the Safe Drinking Water Act are met. It is possible that concentrations of PCE will increase over time if the groundwater contamination is not addressed. Listing the site on the NPL will allow EPA to address this complex problem before it gets worse.

The NPL is a list of sites that are contaminated by hazardous substances and eligible for extensive, long-term cleanup under the Superfund program. Listing on the NPL makes the Five Points Groundwater PCE Plume site eligible to receive federal funds for cleanup while EPA seeks to recover costs from identified responsible parties if applicable. This also guarantees the public an opportunity to participate in cleanup decisions and makes affected communities eligible for technical assistance grants from the EPA to help facilitate understanding technical documents and community involvement at the site.

Information that EPA used to document the proposed listing of this site is available at: www.epa.gov/region8/superfund/ut/fivepoints.

This information can also be obtained at the following locations:

U.S. EPA
Superfund Records Center
1595 Wynkoop Street
Denver, CO 80202-1129

Davis County Library South Branch
725 South Main Street
Bountiful, UT 84010