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First Quality Cylinders

This former facility in Bexar County rebuilt aircraft cylinders and their chromium plating operations resulted in soil and groundwater contamination. The TCEQ is operating and maintaining the cleanup remedies at this site.

Site Summary

The site occupies 1.3 acres at 931 W. Laurel St. in San Antonio. It is bounded by West Laurel Street on the south, North Comal Street on the west, Mullen Street and a church parking lot on the north and Fredericksburg Road on the east.

The facility rebuilt aircraft cylinders here from 1982 to 1993. A process building on the western portion of the site housed a 55-foot-long trench where plating operations were performed. As a result of chromium plating waste spills, the soil and groundwater were contaminated with chromium and hexavalent chromium.

In October 1990, the owner-operator entered into an agreed order with the TCEQ that required investigating the site’s soil and groundwater. Under the subsequent enforcement terms the site owner-operator was required to construct a groundwater containment system to prevent the contamination from migrating. Failing to properly maintain the system, the site was referred to the Superfund program in 1996.

Superfund Registry and Investigation

In September 1997, the TCEQ installed a perimeter fence, disposed of wastes from the process building, and repaired and took over operating the groundwater collection system.

In 1999 the TCEQ proposed the site to the state Superfund registry. Between February 2000 and January 2004 the TCEQ’s remedial investigation identified the source of chromium contamination in soil and delineated the area involved.

A feasibility study was conducted in 2009 to evaluate potential remedies for the site. A removal action in 2012 demolished the plating building and excavated the plating trench and contaminated soils which were the source of groundwater contamination. The excavated materials were disposed of in an off-site permitted disposal facility. Following this cleanup, no additional remedial action was determined necessary for site soils.

Remedial Action

On December 2, 2014, the TCEQ issued an Administrative Order adding the site to the state registry of Superfund sites. The remedy for the groundwater was to include a plume management zone with in-situ chemical reduction.

No responsible party performed the remedy; therefore, the TCEQ completed the remedial design and action in 2015. The TCEQ took over the operation and maintenance (O&M) of the groundwater remedy in September 2015.

Status

The site is in the O&M phase of the Superfund process.