EPA RCRA ID: DC8170024311
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
NRL reports that there is no known historic or current association between the NRL Facility and the Bellevue residential development.
The Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) agreed to participate in the EPA Region III’s Facility Lead Corrective Action program on August 19, 2003.
Corrective action investigations at the Facility primarily have been conducted by the NRL Facility Lead Corrective Action (FLCA) Program. Additional investigations have been conducted by the Military Munitions Response Program (MMRP).
In April 2007, NRL submitted a summary of their evaluation of 62 solid waste management units (SWMU) and 67 areas of concern (AOC) along with four (4) investigation reports. Of the 67 AOCs, NRL indicated that the following six (6) AOCs were associated with the MMRP: Bomb Testing Butt, Original Explosion Pit, Fire Pit, Pistol Range, Relocated Explosion Pit, and Incinerator. Concurrently, NRL submitted an evaluation of the Environmental Indicator (EI) addressing Current Human Exposures Under Control which stated that, with the exception of the potential for vapor intrusion, all other human exposures are likely under control. In August 2007, NRL submitted an evaluation of whether Contaminant Migration in Groundwater is under control. The evaluation determined additional investigations should be completed.
In late April 2008, NRL submitted a Facility Assessment Workplan. The Workplan addressed the investigation of hydrologic conditions throughout the Facility, fill along the Facility’s western border, and soil and other materials at twelve (12) Facility locations.
In early 2009, NRL submitted to EPA a Facility Assessment Report addressing the results of the investigations. In late 2009, following consult with EPA, NRL initiated investigation of the potential for vapor intrusion.
In 2010, EPA designated the District of Columbia Department of the Environment (DDOE) as the EPA Project Manager. In early 2011, DDOE provided EPA with an electronic copy of the September 2010 Site Inspection Report addressing five (5) MMRP Sites. Of the six (6) initial MMRP AOCs, an inspection of the incinerator was determined not to be necessary. In November of 2011, Project Management lead was returned to EPA.
In early 2012, NRL transmitted to EPA a description of the corrective action evaluation status, an update to the environmental indicators, a hard copy of the MMRP report, documents associated with evaluation of radioactive materials formerly used in research at the Facility, and a response to EPA’s comments on the Facility Assessment Report. These documents are under review by EPA.
The EPA determined the Environmental Indicator for Current Human Exposures Under Control was completed on July 31,2017.
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.
he NRL Facility was established in 1923 by the Department of the Navy. The Facility is the key research facility operated by the Department of the Navy Office of Naval Research to address science and technology responsibilities. The Facility now comprises 131 acres and consists of 87 numbered buildings and structures. Most of the buildings are used for research. Manufacturing is not conducted on site. A portion of the property formerly was owned and operated as an Annex to the Naval Gun Factory. The Annex was used to store materials/munitions associated with the Washington Navy Yard.
The Facility is located on approximately 131 acres on the eastern bank of the Potomac River, in Southwest Washington, D.C, between Blue Plains Wastewater Treatment Facility to the south, and Bolling Air Force Base and the Belleview residential development to the north. A portion of the Facility was ceded to the adjacent Blue Plains Waste Water Treatment Facility in 1947. Portions of a former landfill at the southwest tip of Bolling Air Force Base reportedly where shared with NRL.
Investigations at the NRL Facility have been conducted by the NRL and by the MMRP. Investigations conducted by the NRL identified the following contaminants:
- Polychlorinated biphenyl (PCBs) in concrete and PCBs in soil
- Metals, semivolatile organic constituents (commonly referred to as "SVOCs")
- Volatile organic constituents (commonly referred to as "VOCs") in groundwater, soil and air.
NRL conducted an evaluation of risk associated with contaminants at locations not associated with the MMRP. NRL determined there is no current unacceptable exposure associated with identified contaminants at those locations.
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Institutional and Engineering Controls at this Facility
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.