John Deere Waterloo Works – Drivetrain Operations Facility, Waterloo, Black Hawk County, Iowa - Fact Sheet, May 2020

Public Comment Period for Proposed Remedy and Permit Modification

INTRODUCTION

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 7 invites the public to comment on the Proposed Remedy (Proposed Corrective Measures) and draft Permit Modifications for the John Deere Waterloo Works – Drivetrain Operations facility, 400 Westfield Avenue, Waterloo, Iowa.

PROPOSED FINAL REMEDY

The Proposed Remedy Modification is for Solid Waste Management Unit (SWMU) 14 located on the facility, and will consist of a combination of existing interim and ongoing cleanup actions, as well as newly implemented cleanup actions, as discussed below.

• Soil excavation and off-site disposal of volatile organic compound (VOC)-contaminated hot-spot soils.

• Continue monitored natural attenuation (MNA) through the use of an extensive monitoring well network to reduce contaminant concentrations in groundwater by natural chemical, biological and physical attenuation processes to below final cleanup standards.
• Long-term monitoring will be conducted to ensure no off-site migration of contamination is occuring; to track progress of MNA and hydraulic containment; and to confirm that contaminant concentrations in groundwater are reduced to below final cleanup standards for a period of at least three years.
• If post-excavation groundwater monitoring does not indicate a demonstration of sufficient progress toward attainment of groundwater cleanup standards, enhanced anaerobic bioremediation will be implemented as a contingency remedial option for treatment of VOC-impacted groundwater at SWMU-14.

EPA encourages the public to review the Proposed Final Remedy, draft Permit Modifications, and Administrative Record, which contains documents supporting the Proposed Final Remedy.

The public comment period will run from May 27, 2020, through July 13, 2020.

Written comments on the Proposed Final Remedy should be mailed or emailed no later than July 13, 2020, and sent to:

Lisa Messinger
EPA Region 7 (LCRD/ROAG)
11201 Renner Boulevard
Lenexa, KS 66219
Email: messinger.lisa@epa.gov

BACKGROUND

The 290-acre facility is bordered by River Road and the Cedar River on the north and Westfield Avenue on the south. The facility was originally established as the Waterloo Gasoline and Traction Engine Company in 1893. Deere and Company of Moline, Illinois, acquired the facility in 1918 and has operated it since that time. In June 1991, EPA issued a federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) Hazardous Waste Management Permit to John Deere Waterloo Works, which allowed for the operation of a hazardous waste storage facility at the site. Since the issuance of the permit, all the previous permitted units have been either reclassified as Clean Water Act facilities or cleaned and closed under RCRA.

In 2006, the permit was renewed for the remaining corrective action activities for identified Solid Waste Management Units (SWMUs) and Areas of Contamination (AOCs). It contained a cleanup plan, which remains in place as part of the permit, in addition to the Final Remedy Decision for the entire facility issued on Sept. 26, 2019. The remedy for the entire facility included engineering controls in the form of caps over contaminated soil areas; long-term monitoring and monitored natural attenuation of groundwater contamination; hydraulic control; and the use of institutional controls in the form of a Soil Management Plan and Environmental Covenant to mitigate exposure to residual contamination. The remedy decision for groundwater at the time for SWMU-14 was to treat groundwater contamination with the use of soil vapor extraction, in-well air stripping or enhanced in-situ bioremediation, or a combination thereof.

CONTAMINANTS

Environmental investigations have identified widespread metals, semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOCs), and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in groundwater, as well as specific areas with chlorinated VOCs, petroleum hydrocarbons, and Aroclor in groundwater as the primary risk drivers. In particular, chlorinated VOCs have been detected in soil at SWMU-14 in limited areas above levels that may be contributing to ongoing groundwater contamination in the area.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

The Administrative Record is available for public review during normal business hours at the following locations:

Waterloo City Hall, 2nd Floor
Planning and Zoning Department
715 Mulberry Street
Waterloo, IA 50701