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Texas American Oil

No further Superfund environmental response actions are required on this former waste oil recycling facility in Midlothian, Ellis County.

Site Background

The Texas American Oil site is located in an abandoned limestone quarry, approximately 3 miles north of Midlothian on Old State Highway 67 in northwest Ellis County, near the Dallas County line. The 8-acre tract was the location of a waste oil recycler, which re-refined used crankcase and transmission oil from 1970 to 1978. When the facility closed in 1978, the wastes were pumped from the three pits near the west end of the facility; the remaining sludge was mixed in place with soil, and the pits were covered with a 3-inch layer of asphalt to comply with a Texas Department of Water Resources order. In 1980, the property was leased by a transporter of used oil. Records indicate that operations were shut down that same year, but most of the structures, tanks, and stored waste remained on site until at least 1984, when the EPA made an inspection and recommended that Texas American Oil remove all liquids from a sump pit and a 135,000-gallon storage tank and restrict access to those areas. An April 1987 site inspection showed that all tanks and equipment had been removed; however, soil samples from the areas of the structures showed elevated lead concentrations. At the time of the hazard ranking scoring, the contaminants of concern included chloroform, lead, and PCBs.

Superfund Actions Taken to Date

  • October 16, 1987, a legal notice was published in the Texas Register (12 TexReg 3858) proposing the site to the state Superfund registry, and announcing that a public meeting to receive citizen comments would be held at the Trinity River Authority Central Plant in Grand Prairie on November 10, 1987.
  • January 22, 1988, a legal notice was published in the Texas Register, (13 TexReg 427) listing the site on the state Superfund registry.
  • The Texas Water Commission published a legal notice on September 25, 1990, in the Texas Register (15 TexReg 5624) soliciting services of a consultant to perform the remedial investigation/feasibility study (RI/FS) at the site.
  • January-February 1992, remedial investigation/feasibility study underway.
  • September 1, 1993, effective date of the creation of the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission from the joining of the Texas Water Commission and the Texas Air Control Board and a portion of the Texas Department of Health.
  • October 1995, remedial investigation completed.
  • January 23, 1996, baseline risk assessment completed.
  • March 3, 1999, supplemental sampling for feasibility study completed.
  • March 30, 1999, treatability study recommendation initiated.
  • June 22, 2000, a legal notice was published in the Midlothian Mirror announcing a public meeting would be held July 31, 2000, at the City Hall Chambers in Midlothian to present to the community the proposal to stabilize and contain the contaminants in a pit that would be covered with a clay cap. The recommended remedy was the most cost effective, reasonable and appropriate.
  • June 23, 2000, a legal notice was published in the Texas Register (25 TexReg 6220-6221) announcing a public meeting was to be held July 31, 2000, at the City Hall Chambers in Midlothian to present to the community the proposal (Proposed Remedial Action Document or PRAD) to stabilize and contain the contaminants in a pit that would be covered with a clay cap. Long-term maintenance and groundwater monitoring of the cap system would be conducted. The recommended remedy was the most cost effective, reasonable and appropriate.
  • July 31, 2000, eight interested persons attended the public meeting at the City Hall in Midlothian to hear TNRCC representatives explain the proposal to stabilize the contaminants in a cell with a mixture of Type 1 Portland cement and hydrated lime. The stabilized waste cell would be covered with a clay cap. Long-term maintenance and groundwater monitoring of the cap system would be conducted. The recommended remedy was the most cost effective, reasonable and appropriate.
  • December 19, 2000, TNRCC issued an administrative order, directing the potentially responsible party to perform or fund the remedial design and remedial action for the cleanup. The order set cleanup levels, selected the remedy for cleanup, and established rules, responsibilities and enforcement options for remedial design/remedial action under state Superfund process.
  • December 20, 2000, TNRCC issued a work order to I.T. Corporation to conduct an on-site pilot-scale treatability study to stabilize the wastes in the impoundment. The purpose was to confirm the data obtained from a bench-scale treatability study and to gather data for the remedial design.
  • December 29, 2000, effective date of a TNRCC administrative order for performance of the remedial design / remedial action.
  • April 23, 2001, an affidavit of lien payable to the commission was filed in the Ellis County real property records by the TNRCC. The lien was filed pursuant to the Texas Solid Waste Disposal Act, Texas Health and Safety Code §361.194, to recover the state's remediation expenses.
  • May 1, 2001, the pilot-scale treatability study was completed by I.T. Corporation and a work order was issued to perform a remedial design.
  • October 17, 2001, TNRCC received the preliminary remedial design from I.T. Corporation.
  • June 5, 2002, TNRCC approved the final remedial design for the remedy, which will consist of stabilization of the waste into a cell with a concrete cap cover.
  • June 24, 2002, bids were solicited from qualified contractors to perform the remedy.
  • August 12, 2002, submitted bids were opened for a contractor to perform the remedial action at the site.
  • September 1, 2002, effective date of the name change from Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission (TNRCC) to Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ).
  • October 21, 2002, the Texas Commission on Environmental Qualify, formerly known as TNRCC, completed review of the bids, bonds, and insurance and notified Eagle Construction and Environmental Services, Inc., of Eastland to mobilize for the remedial action.
  • November 19, 2002, TCEQ approved a change order to purchase additional backfill material for the remedial action.
  • November 22, 2002, TCEQ's contractor received the off-site backfill material and excavated additional backfill from the clean portion of the site (creating an on-site borrow pit) to backfill areas where contaminated soils would be excavated.
  • November 24, 2002, the contractor began receiving a reagent material to be used to stabilizes the waste, and began placing the mixture into the excavated areas.
  • November 27, 2002, the contractor began construction of the treatment cell.
  • December 2002, during the month, the contractor started the treatment process for the contaminated soils. The demolished concrete slabs were placed on the bottom of the on-site borrow pit. The contractor purchased and placed additional off-site backfill material to replace the removed, contaminated portions of the on-site drainage berm.
  • February 2003, during the month, the oversight contractor sampled additional berm material on the west side of the site, and discovered that some sections of the berm would have to be stabilized, along with the containment cell material. In response to concerns from a nearby resident about oily odors coming from the site, the contractor purchased and placed 6 millimeter heavy duty polyethylene cover on the treated soils and open excavations. The contractor documented that the treated soils and waste piles were covered at the end of each day.
  • March 2003, during the month, excavation was performed. During the excavation, the contractor discovered some material that they could not stabilize. The contractor informed TCRQ that the soils/sludge failed the action levels for lead leachability tests. Samples of the soils and sludge were obtained to be used in a bench scale treatability study, to determine a more effective treatment.
  • April 2003, during the month, bench scale treatability studies were conducted in the laboratory of the soils and sludge to test the treatment technology.
  • May 22, 2003, TCEQ met with the remediation contractor and agreed to conduct a pilot-scale treatability study, which would incorporate testing a cleanup technology under actual site conditions to identify potential problems prior to full scale implementation.
  • May 27, 2003, the remediation contractor mobilized to the site to construct the pilot-scale treatment areas.
  • June 9, 2003, the pilot-scale treatability study began.
  • June 23, 2003, the remediation treatment activities on site resumed.
  • July 10, 2003, a legal notice was published in the Midlothian Mirror announcing a significant change in the remedial design, calling for removal and off-site disposal of lead-contaminated soils, and elimination of the clay-covered waste containment pit.
  • July 11, 2003, a legal notice was published in the Texas Register (28 TexReg 5570) announcing a significant change in the remedial design, calling for removal and off-site disposal of lead-contaminated soils, and elimination of the clay-covered waste containment pit.
  • July 17, 2003, the contractor completed soil treatment activities at the site.
  • July 22, 2003, the last of the treated material was removed from the site.
  • September 24, 2003, the contractor achieved substantial completion of the remedial activities.
  • March 18, 2004, a final site inspection was conducted and some noncritical deficiencies were noted.
  • March 2004, an updated community relations plan (CRP) was prepared for the Texas American Oil site.
  • April 2004, all field work was completed, and TCEQ's oversight contractor conducted the final inspection at the site and concluded that the site passed the field inspection of the completion of the remedy.
  • June 2004, TCEQ and the contractor signed the certificate of final completion, designating the construction of the remedy as complete.
  • August 2004, TCEQ accepted the remedial action report in an interoffice memorandum to the file and concluded that the site no longer poses an unacceptable risk to human health or the environment. No further remedial action is warranted at the site. Site conditions have met the residential land use criteria established by the Texas risk reduction program.
  • December 9, 2005, a legal notice was published in the Texas Register (30 TexReg 8316) proposing to delete the site from the state Superfund registry in accordance with 30 TAC &167;335.344(c), and inviting public comment on the determination that due to remedial actions that have been performed, the site no longer presents an imminent and substantial endangerment to public health and safety or the environment. No further remedial action is necessary. A public meeting to receive citizen comments is to be held at the Midlothian City Hall council chambers on January 19, 2006.
  • January 19, 2006, a public meeting to receive citizen comments on the intent to delete the site from the Superfund registry was held at the Midlothian City Hall council chambers. No comments or challenges were received to the decision to delete the facility from the Superfund registry.
  • March 3, 2006, a legal notice was published in the Texas Register (31 TexReg 1500) officially deleting the Texas American Oil site from the Superfund registry. The site is now appropriate for residential use.

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