EPA RCRA ID: DC8470090004
The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) is the public law that creates the framework for the proper management of hazardous and non-hazardous solid waste. Corrective action is a requirement under RCRA that facilities that treat, store or dispose of hazardous wastes, or did so in the past, investigate and clean up hazardous releases into soil, groundwater, surface water and air. For more information, and for more information on RCRA-specific terms used on this page, please visit EPA’s umbrella RCRA web page or EPA’s RCRA Corrective Action page.
On this page:
- Cleanup Activities
- Facility Description
- Institutional/Engineering Controls
- Enforcement and Compliance
- Related Information and Publicly Available Electronic Records
- Contacts for this Facility
Cleanup Activities
The US General Services Administration-National Capital Region (GSA) is directing the redevelopment of a 55-acre property located on the banks of the Anacostia River in S.E. Washington, DC. The undeveloped portion of the property is named the Southeast Federal Center (SEFC). The redeveloped portion of the former SEFC is called ‘The Yards’ and is mostly privately owned.
The property is cleaned-up parcel by parcel, prior to redevelopment construction.
Currently, Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) Corrective Action activities at this facility are being conducted under an EPA 7003 Consent Order. In 1998, GSA began investigating and remediating contamination under a Consent Decree administered by the US Department of Justice (DOJ) on behalf of a number of plaintiffs. On July 14, 1999, EPA issued GSA an Administrative Order under Section 3013 of the Solid Waste Disposal Act to identify contaminated areas and take interim measures to abate Site contamination. A Section 7003 Order was negotiated with GSA in 2014 to streamline and complete the clean-up already underway at the SEFC. The 2014 Order covers all the initial SEFC land except for the U.S. DOT Parcel, Parcel D, Parcel M, Parcel K, and Parcel P.
The SEFC was divided into 15 parcels for redevelopment.
The U.S. DOT Parcel and Parcels D, K, M, P, and N were investigated and cleaned-up under the EPA § 3013 Consent Order issued to GSA in 1999.
In June 2015, EPA issued a Statement of Basis (SB) detailing the SEFC Site history and providing the ‘basis’ for EPA’s proposed final Remedy decision for Parcels A, E, F, G, H, I, L, O and Q. EPA's Final Remedy Decision for these parcels was signed in July 2015 after public comment closed. The SB and Final Remedy Decision for these Parcels can be found in the "Additional Site Information " under the "Documents, Reports and Photographs" heading.
Since then, GSA has cleaned up Parcels G, I, L, and O, and most of Parcel H.
Soil excavation at Parcel H was completed in 2023. During the excavation, trichloroethylene (TCE) was discovered in deep soils. Contaminated soil was removed to the extent possible within construction constraints, for the ten-story building under construction. Corrective measures were implemented to prevent the potential for vapors from the remaining contamination to enter the below ground garage. Future sampling is planned to verify indoor air is protective of human health, and to evaluate potential impacts to groundwater.
During the clean-up of Parcel H, chromium was discovered in concrete being used in small areas (tie backs) to support the exterior soil walls during excavation. Following the discovery, a different concrete was used. Future sampling is planned to evaluate groundwater impacts, if any, from the chromium laden concrete.
Cleanup Actions or environmental indicators characterizing the entire facility are shown below. This listing, and all the data on this page, come from EPA’s RCRAInfo and are refreshed nightly to this page. For this table, a blank in the Status column could mean the action either has not occurred or has not been reported in RCRAInfo.
Cleanup Activities Pertaining to the Entire Facility
| Action | Status | Date of Action |
|---|---|---|
| Human Exposure Under Control Human Exposure Under Control(CA725) | ||
| Groundwater Migration Under ControlGroundwater Migration Under Control (CA750) | ||
| Remedy DecisionRemedy Decision (CA400) | ||
| Remedy ConstructionRemedy Construction (CA550) | ||
| Ready for Anticipated Use Ready for Anticipated Use (CA800) | ||
| Performance Standards AttainedPerformance Standards Attained (CA900) | ||
| Corrective Action Process TerminatedCorrective Action Process Terminated (CA999) |
For definitions of the terms used, hover over or click on the term.
Cleanup Activities Pertaining to a Portion of the Facility
| Action | Area Name | Date of Action |
|---|
For definitions of the terms used, hover over or click on the term.
Facility Description
Link to a larger, interactive view of the map.
The SEFC was created in 1963, when the Washington Navy Yard (WNY) transferred 55-acres to GSA for redevelopment. The 55-acres had previously been used for shipbuilding (1800’s) and was later heavily industrialized by ordnance (gun) manufacturing up through WWII.
Institutional and Engineering Controls at this Facility
The properties at the SEFC are supplied by the public water utility. Groundwater use for drinking water is prohibited through property deeds. Other engineering and institutional controls are in place for Parcels H and P.
Institutional and Engineering Controls help ensure human exposure and groundwater migration are under control at a cleanup facility. Where control types have been reported by states and EPA in EPA’s RCRAInfo, they are shown below. Not all control types are needed at all facilities, and some facilities do not require any controls. Where there are blanks, the control types may not be needed, may not be in place, or may not be reported in RCRAInfo.
Are Controls in Place at this Facility?
|
Control(s) Type |
Control(s) in Place? |
Areas Subject to Control(s) |
|
|---|---|---|---|
|
Institutional ControlsNon-engineering controls used to restrict land use or land access in order to protect people and the environment from exposure to hazardous substances remaining in the site/or facility. (CA 772) |
Informational DevicesInformational Devices (ID) |
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Governmental Controls (GC) |
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Enforcement and Permit Tools (EP) |
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| Proprietary ControlsProprietary Controls (PR) | |||
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Engineering ControlsEngineering measures designed to minimize the potential for human exposure to contamination by either limiting direct contact with contaminated areas or controlling migration of contaminants. (CA 770) |
Groundwater ControlGroundwater Control (GW) |
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Non-Groundwater |
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For definitions of the terms used, hover over or click on the term.
Enforcement and Compliance at this Facility
EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (OECA) provides detailed historical information about enforcement and compliance activities at each RCRA Corrective Action Site in their Enforcement and Compliance Historical Online (ECHO) system.
RCRA Enforcement and Compliance Reports from ECHO
Related Information and Publicly Available Electronic Records
For more information about this facility, see these other EPA links:
- RCRA information in EPA’s Envirofacts database
- Information about this facility submitted to EPA under different environmental programs as reported in EPA’s Facility Registry Services
- Alternative Names for this facility as reported by EPA programs in EPA’s Facility Registry Services
- Cleanups in My Community provides an interactive map to see EPA cleanups in context with additional data, and lists for downloading data
- Search RCRA Corrective Action Sites provides a search feature for Corrective Action Sites
Documents, Photos and Graphics
Contacts for this Facility
EPA Region implements and enforces the RCRA Corrective Action program for and federally recognized tribes.
For further information on this corrective action site, use the Contact Information for Corrective Action Hazardous Waste Clean Ups listings that are accessible through Corrective Action Programs around the Nation.