EPA RCRA ID: WVD041952714
On this page:
- Cleanup Status
- Facility Description
- Contaminants at this Facility
- Institutional/Engineer Controls
- Enforcement and Compliance
- Related Information
- Contacts for this Facility
Cleanup Status
Virginia Department of Environmental (DEQ) is the lead agency for managing cleanups at this facility.
In February 1999, EPA issued the Corrective Action portion of the RCRA Permit for the Site. In October 2008, EPA extended the expiration date of the RCRA permit until a new permit is issued by WVDEP. As required by the RCRA permit, DuPont completed a release assessment and RCRA Facility Investigation (RFI) at 21 solid waste management units (SWMUs) and one area of concern (AOC). In addition, DuPont investigated several former operating areas at the site that were not identified as SWMUs or AOCs. These areas are referred to as voluntary investigation areas (VIAs).
The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) issued a Statement of Basis (SB) to solicit public comment on a proposed remedy and Post Closure Permit modifications. DEP's proposed remedy for the Facility consists of soil excavation and offsite disposal, groundwater monitoring, engineering controls consisting of capping and fencing, and institutional controls to implement land and groundwater use restrictions.
DEP provided a forty-five day public comment period on the SB and Permit modifications. No comments were received on the proposed remedy and DEP will modify the Permit to incorporate the remedy into the Permit.
Cleanup Background
The RFI was conducted in three phases for the PRW site. All units were fully investigated for releases and for potential impact to human health and the environment. The RFI findings were presented in the Comprehensive RCRA Facility Investigation Report (URS, 2013a), which concluded that the RFI was considered complete and recommended initiation of a Corrective Measures Study (CMS) for the following units: eight SWMUs (SWMUs 3, 16, 22A, 36, 37, 46A, 46B, and 47), one AOC (AOC A), and two VIAs (VIA C and VIA G). In addition, groundwater monitoring was recommended for wells located downgradient and in the vicinity of SWMUs 16, 21A, 21B, 21C, 22A, 36, and 22C. The Comprehensive RFI Report was approved by EPA on August 7, 2013.
Following the approval of the RFI report, DuPont developed a CMS Work Plan (URS, 2013b) for the site pursuant to Section II.D and Attachment E of the RCRA permit. The CMS work plan was submitted in November 2013, and was approved by EPA in December 2013. The CMS work plan identified potential corrective measure technologies to be evaluated further in the CMS; briefly described the potential technologies; discussed how the remedies will be evaluated in the CMS; and specified how the CMS will be prepared consistent with the HSWA permit. The CMS work plan also identified additional data collection activities to support corrective measure alternative evaluations in the CMS.
In 2015, DuPont created Chemours Company FC LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary, to take over management of the PRW site. Later that year Chemours began operating as an independent publicly owned company fully responsible for the PRW site. The CMS Report was submitted to EPA and WVDEP for review on August 2, 2016. The CMS included the elements required to evaluate proposed remedies including Media Cleanup Standards and a Monitored Natural Attenuation Groundwater Evaluation. The final revised CMS was submitted to EPA and WVDEP on February 28, 2017.
Cleanup Actions or environmental indicators characterizing the entire facility are shown below. It is not intended as an extensive list of milestones/activities. This listing, and all the data on this page, come from EPA’s RCRAInfo and are refreshed nightly to this page. For this table and the Cleanup Activities Pertaining to a Portion of the Facility table that follows, 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 |
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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 1,242-acre Chemours PRW site is located on U.S. Route 11 in Berkeley County at Falling Waters, West Virginia. Manufacturing facilities were constructed between 1950 and 1952 and operations began in 1953. From 1953 to 1977 the plant manufactured nitroglycerine (NG) and dynamite. Water gel explosives and smokeless powder were manufactured at the plant in the 1970s, and ammonia nitrate fuel oil explosives were manufactured in the 1970s and 1980s. Flexible explosives were also manufactured until 1994. In 1994, DuPont ceased all explosive manufacturing operations.
Currently, the only remaining manufacturing operation, Fasloc, is leased and operated by JENNMAR-Systems USA (Jennmar). Current operations at the plant consist of the manufacturing and assembly of Fasloc cartridges (non-explosive roof bolt grouting systems used in mining and construction).
Current land use at the site consists of the following:
- 63 acres of Active Manufacturing Area (long-term lease)
- 354 acres of Buffer Land
- 163 acres of Former Manufacturing Area
- 662 acres of Former Landfill and Product Storage Area
Contaminants at this Facility
The main constituents found in the site's soil and groundwater include nitrates, a few volatile organic compounds such as methylene chloride, and 1,2-Dichloroethane and lead. Some areas where spills occurred, are potentially contaminated with explosive compounds such as nitroglycerin.
Institutional and Engineering Controls at this Facility
Institutional Controls include:
- Long term site-wide groundwater monitoring;
- Capping and cap maintenance;
- Soil management, namely, off-site disposal
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) |
Documents available on-line: |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
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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
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.