Superfund Sites in Reuse in Kansas

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29TH & MEAD GROUND WATER CONTAMINATION

The 1,440-acre 29th & Mead Ground Water Contamination Superfund site is in Wichita, Kansas. It is in the North Industrial Corridor, which includes state-led contaminated sites. The site has been in industrial use since 1887. Since 1949, companies have built residential furnace and air conditioning units at the site. Later, part of the site was used as a vehicle construction facility. These activities contaminated soil and groundwater, which mixed with contaminated groundwater from other NIC sites. Federal and state agencies began investigating contamination in area groundwater in 1983. Studies found several possible sources at the site. EPA added the site to the National Priorities List in 1990 and took it off the NPL in 1996 after negotiations with state agencies. The site’s potentially responsible parties are cleaning up the site with oversight from EPA. Cleanup includes groundwater treatment, removal of contaminated soil and the use of heat to remove contaminant vapors from soil. EPA is working with the site owner to make sure contaminated vapors are not present, or are mitigated, in buildings above the groundwater contamination. Air conditioning unit manufacturing on-site is ongoing. A building equipment contractor is also on-site. 
Last updated October 2025

As of December 2024, EPA had data on 2 on-site businesses. These businesses employed 1,350 people and generated an estimated $289,822,265 in annual sales revenue. For additional information click here.

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57TH AND NORTH BROADWAY STREETS SITE

The 57th and North Broadway Streets Superfund site is in Wichita, Kansas. The site is a 32-acre area of groundwater contamination located under residential and commercial areas. The Kansas Department of Health and Environment began investigating drinking water well contamination in the area in 1983. The KDHE identified nearby businesses as the sources of contamination. Past activities at an oil refining plant, trucking company, abandoned gas station and abandoned paint factory led to soil and groundwater contamination. EPA added the site to the National Priorities List in 1992. EPA supplied clean water to affected homes and businesses. Cleanup also included the removal of toxic vapors from contaminated groundwater and soil. EPA’s cleanup plan enabled site uses to remain in place, including industrial, commercial, agricultural and residential areas. The southern part of the site includes residential and business areas, religious institutions and agricultural uses. The northern part of the site includes businesses, municipal facilities, industrial areas, farms and open land. A Remedial Action contract to implement Operable Unit 3 is currently in the works. The remedy being implemented will include excavation and disposal of contaminated soil, in-situ treatment of the source areas, and a groundwater treatment, and extraction system at the southern portion of the plume.
Last updated October 2025

As of December 2024, EPA had data on 2 on-site businesses. These businesses employed 36 people and generated an estimated $11,208,000 in annual sales revenue. For additional information click here.

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ACE SERVICES

The 2.5-acre Ace Services Superfund site is in Colby, Kansas. From 1969 to 1989, a chrome-plating facility operated on site, contaminating structures, soil, and groundwater. In 1992, the Kansas Department of Health and Environment coordinated the removal of wastes from the plating shop building. In 1994, EPA led a removal action to clean up additional contaminated soils, concrete, and structures. The site was added to the National Priorities List in 1995. Long-term cleanup included decontamination of the plating and machine shop buildings, demolition of structures, removal of contaminated soil, and the installation of a groundwater extraction and treatment system. Treated groundwater from the site is either beneficially reused in the City of Colby’s public water supply or discharged to a nearby intermittent stream. Groundwater cleanup is ongoing. Reuses at the site include office and storage space for the city of Colby and a church. 
Last updated October 2025

As of December 2024, EPA had data on one on-site business. This business employed one person. For additional information click here.

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ARKANSAS CITY DUMP

The 200-acre Arkansas City Dump Superfund site is in Arkansas City, Kansas. In the early 1900s, an oil refinery buried large quantities of toxic sludge in a 2.5-acre pit on-site. After an explosion and fire destroyed the refinery in 1927, workers put refinery-related hazardous wastes in the pit. Unregulated dumping of domestic and solid waste continued until 1981. EPA added the site to the National Priorities List in 1983. The cleanup, led by EPA and the state of Kansas, included neutralizing the acidic sludge and covering the area with soil and vegetation. It also included controls to protect the soil cover. After cleanup, EPA took the site off the NPL in 1996. Operation and maintenance consists of mowing and inspection of the visible waste area soil cover. The city of Arkansas City has maintained the Site under an agreement with the state of Kansas. The north waste pit portion of the Site cover is maintained by the property lessee/operator/owner. Today, site uses include industrial facilities and a municipal public works facility. Recreational uses include Veterans Memorial Lake and a hiking and biking trail. 
Last updated October 2025

As of December 2024, EPA had data on 10 on-site businesses. These businesses employed 57 people and generated an estimated $2,438,980 in annual sales revenue. For additional information click here.

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BIG RIVER SAND CO.

The 123-acre Big River Sand Co. site is in Wichita, Kansas. The site includes sand and gravel mining areas. During the 1970s, a private property owner disposed of drums of paint-related waste on-site, next to a sand quarry lake. In 1978, the Big River Sand Company bought 80 acres from the property owner. As part of the sales agreement, the property owner began to transfer the drums to his adjacent property in 1982. Nearly 200 barrels were moved before the Kansas Department of Health and Environment halted the action because the property owner did not have a permit to store or dispose of the waste. A state-led investigation in 1982 found that many of the drums on-site were damaged, corroded, and leaking. Further studies found solvents and heavy metals in nearby residential wells. From 1982 to 1984, the state provided oversight of the property owner’s removal and cleanup activities. EPA added the site to the National Priorities List in 1986. Site investigations found low levels of metals in soil and groundwater. These levels were not higher than occur naturally in the area. Based on this information, the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry found that the site did not present a significant health threat. EPA selected no further action for the site’s remedy in 1988 and took it off the NPL in 1992. Today, a housing development is on-site. 
Last updated October 2025

As of December 2024, EPA did not have economic data related to on-site businesses, or economic data were not applicable due to site use. For additional information click here.

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CANEY RESIDENTIAL YARDS

The Caney Residential Yards Superfund site is in Caney, Kansas. Smelting operations began in Caney in 1904. Airborne heavy metals from the smelting operation, including cadmium, lead and zinc, settled on properties in the area, contaminating the soil. The community historically used waste materials from the smelters for construction and fill materials for infrastructure and residential and commercial properties. Short-term cleanup activities have included removing and disposing of contaminated soils and waste at the smelter facility. EPA has completed residential soil sampling at over 1,000 homes and removed lead-contaminated soil from over 300 properties. EPA added the site to the National Priorities List in 2020. Long-term cleanup includes digging up and disposing of contaminated soil, backfilling with clean soil, and revegetating the areas. EPA’s Superfund Redevelopment Program provided technical assistance in 2022 and 2023 to support community investments in new and revitalized housing, helping to complement ongoing investigation and cleanup activities. The outcome of the technical assistance was a Community Investment Prospectus. Continued uses at the site include homes, businesses and schools. More than 1,000 homes have undergone lead testing. On March 8, 2024, a Remedial Action contract was granted to clean up the properties that meet the remediation criteria of 200 ppm lead.
Last updated October 2025

As of December 2024, EPA had data on 3 on-site businesses. These businesses employed 81 people and generated an estimated $1,424,090 in annual sales revenue. For additional information click here.

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CHEMICAL COMMODITIES INC - KANSAS AVE

The Chemical Commodities Inc – Kansas Ave site is in Kansas City, Kansas. Chemical Commodities. Inc. operated a chemical brokerage facility on-site. It handled, stored, repackaged and distributed a variety of chemicals and unregulated and regulated materials, including oxidizers, flammables, corrosives and poisons. Current site uses include a fabrication engineering business and a commercial printer and stationery store. Site was archived in 2002. 
Last updated October 2025

As of December 2024, EPA had data on 2 on-site businesses. These businesses employed 36 people and generated an estimated $950,000 in annual sales revenue. For additional information click here.

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CHEMICAL COMMODITIES, INC.

The Chemical Commodities, Inc. (CCI) Superfund site is a 1.5-acre property in Olathe, Kansas. CCI, a chemical brokerage and recycling facility, was at the facility from 1951 to 1989. CCI’s recycling activities often spilled or leaked hazardous chemicals. Other on-site companies performed chemical repackaging and storage activities. CCI stored chemicals on the property in aboveground and underground storage tanks and drums. Activities at the site resulted in soil and groundwater contamination. Nearby residents reported many fires and explosions at the site during the 1960s and 1970s. Investigations by EPA and the Kansas Department of Health and Environment identified contaminated soil. EPA added the site to the National Priorities List in 1994. Cleanup activities included removing and disposing of contaminated soil, putting a cap over the site to prevent future exposure, putting land use controls in place, treating groundwater contamination, and maintaining a vapor control system. The potentially responsible parties worked with EPA and other organizations to develop the Olathe Pollinator Prairie on-site. The prairie is a walk-through educational and natural habitat for Monarch butterflies. Two outreach programs, Monarch Watch and the Pollinator Partnership, are part of the effort. Both programs work on education, research and conservation. Other groups helped develop the habitat. Monarch Joint Venture, a partnership of federal and state agencies, non-governmental organizations, and academic programs, supports efforts to protect the Monarch migration across the lower 48 United States. Wildlife Habitat Council is a group dedicated to restoring wildlife habitat, protecting biodiversity and educating communities. The CCI Community Advisory Group also supported community priorities and interests in site cleanup and reuse. The Olathe Pollinator Prairie opened in 2012. It includes habitat for birds, bees and butterflies, a tagging station for migrating butterflies, and information kiosks along a walking trail. In October 2012, project partners received EPA Region 7’s Leading Environmentalism and Forwarding Sustainability award. The award recognizes innovative thinking and environmental stewardship. Today, the site provides a beautiful landscape for the surrounding neighborhood. It also offers opportunities for the community to learn about the importance of pollination.
Last updated October 2025

As of December 2024, EPA did not have economic data related to on-site businesses, or economic data were not applicable due to site use. For additional information click here.

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CHEROKEE COUNTY

Today, the site is covered with acres of tall, waving grass harboring birds and small mammals
Cherokee County

The 115-square-mile Cherokee County Superfund site is in Cherokee County, Kansas. Starting in the mid-1800s, hard rock mining took place on-site. When mining ended in 1970, large piles of mining wastes remained. These wastes led to contamination of soil, sediment, surface water and groundwater with heavy metals. EPA added the site to the National Priorities List in 1983. EPA worked with the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, the Quapaw Nation, and the responsible parties to clean up the site and make sure the remedy fit well with continued uses at the site as well as new reuse opportunities. Cleanup is ongoing and has included providing a clean, permanent water source for residents, removing waste from streams, and digging up residential soils and filling in the areas with clean material. Over 500 homes have been connected to alternate sources of drinking water. EPA monitors ongoing operation and maintenance efforts for the many remedies now in place across the site. During cleanup, EPA’s Superfund Redevelopment Program has helped evaluate how ongoing cleanup decisions could take the site’s future land uses into account. SRP supported a project to explore agricultural and energy potential at the site. The Riverton (Unit 12) Combined Cycle "peaker" Power Plant is a gas fired power project that has been active on site since its commission in 2007. SRP also developed a brochure for landowners that summarizes best practices and resources for improving soil productivity on former mining lands. Site uses are mostly agricultural. The 12-acre Work Area #1 in the northwest tributary of Tar Creek remedial action in the Treece subsite is used for farming cash crops such as wheat, corn and soybeans. In the future, this area could also support the production of livestock forage, as pasture/rangeland, or host habitat for pollinators and other key ecosystem species. More than 2,700 acres of the site are now agricultural areas, including livestock operations, and wildlife habitat. Continued uses on-site include residential, commercial and light industrial areas. Historic Route 66 crosses the site; the site includes several visitor centers and businesses that are Route 66-related attractions. New recreation amenities include two ballparks in Baxter Springs. Developers have also built new residential areas during the cleanup. Part of the site now hosts a medical complex. A wide range of public services, including schools, post offices, libraries, police and fire stations and parks, remain on-site. Manufacturing facilities and commercial businesses also remain active on-site. For additional information about this site, please reach out to Elizabeth Kramer (Kramer.Elizabeth@epa.gov) and r7-tsmd@epa.gov. 
Last updated October 2025

As of December 2024, EPA had data on 238 on-site businesses. These businesses employed 3,492 people and generated an estimated $764,311,590 in annual sales revenue. For additional information click here.

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FORMER UNITED ZINC & ASSOCIATED SMELTERS

The Former United Zinc & Associated Smelters Superfund site is in Iola, Kansas. Several zinc and lead smelting plants were active in the area in the early 1900s. Facility operations spread lead contamination across Iola. Smelter wastes were used as fill for houses, sidewalks and driveways. In 2005, the Kansas Department of Health and Environment investigations found high levels of lead in area homes. EPA led a time-critical removal of lead-contaminated soils at 127 residential properties and a schoolyard in 2006. EPA added the site to the National Priorities List in 2013. Sampling at nearly all residential properties in Iola found about 1,371 properties qualifying for cleanup. Over 1,280 properties have been cleaned up to date. Cleanup is ongoing. In 2021, the site was among those selected by EPA to receive additional cleanup funding. With this funding, EPA is working on backlogged remedial construction projects and accelerating cleanups at NPL sites. This funding is being used to remove contaminated soil from residential properties. Current site uses include a new elementary school, a cinema, a concrete supplier, and a fertilizer distributor. They also include a grain elevator, an oil field supplies and fittings store, a self-storage facility, a specialty and custom item manufacturer, and a warehouse. 
Last updated October 2025

As of December 2024, EPA had data on 7 on-site businesses. These businesses employed 44 people and generated an estimated $13,286,000 in annual sales revenue. For additional information click here.

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HYDRO-FLEX INC.

The 3-acre Hydro-Flex Inc. Superfund site is in Topeka, Kansas. Hydro-Flex Inc. started making specialized tubing, hoses, heat exchangers and fittings at the site in 1970. From 1970 to 1981, operators discharged rinse water, sludge and other wastes from facility operations on-site. EPA added the site to the National Priorities List (NPL) in 1989. After site investigations, EPA and the Kansas Department of Health and Environment found the site did not pose a risk to human health and the environment. EPA took the site off the NPL in 1993. A hydraulic repair service business is active on-site.
Last updated October 2025

As of December 2024, EPA did not have economic data related to on-site businesses, or economic data were not applicable due to site use. For additional information click here.

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KANSAS CITY STRUCTURAL STEEL

New Wal Mart supermarket at the Kansas City Structural Steel site
Kansas City Structural Steel

The 22-acre Kansas City Structural Steel site is in Kansas City, Kansas. Companies smelted silver ore and made steel products at the site for more than a century. Industrial activities from the steel plant contaminated soil with heavy metals, including lead. Cleanup took place from 1990 to 1995. The site’s potentially responsible party led the cleanup under EPA’s oversight. In 2013, the Lane4 Property Group approached the property owner, neighborhood leaders and EPA with plans to redevelop the site. The developer broke ground on the La Plaza Argentine shopping center in 2014. The center includes grocery and retail stores. Also in 2014, EPA Region 7 presented its Leading Environmentalism and Forwarding Sustainability Award to the store and the Argentine Neighborhood Development Association, recognizing their leadership and redevelopment success. In 2016, the Kansas Department of Corrections broke ground on a new police station at the site. The Kansas City South Patrol Police Substation opened in 2017. Planning is underway for more reuses at the site.
Last updated October 2025

As of December 2024, EPA had data on 2 on-site businesses. These businesses employed 300 people and generated an estimated $12,822,000 in annual sales revenue. For additional information click here.

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OBEE ROAD

The Obee Road Superfund site is in Hutchinson, Kansas. The city of Hutchinson ran a landfill at the site from 1953 to 1968. It received domestic and industrial wastes and disposed of it in trenches. In addition, companies ran manufacturing facilities at the site from 1942 to 1988. These activities contaminated soil and groundwater. EPA added the site to the National Priorities List in 1987. The state is the lead agency on this site. Interim measures included connecting affected homes and properties to the public water supply, building and operating groundwater extraction and treatment wells, and putting landfill access restrictions in place. Long-term cleanup includes removal of contaminated soil and groundwater treatment and monitoring. Groundwater is diverted from an extraction well and used for seasonal crop irrigation. Current site uses include homes, Hutchinson Regional Airport and a business. 
Last updated October 2025

As of December 2024, EPA had data on 6 on-site businesses. These businesses employed 49 people and generated an estimated $3,422,490 in annual sales revenue. For additional information click here.

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STROTHER FIELD INDUSTRIAL PARK

The 2-square-mile Strother Field Industrial Park Superfund site is near Winfield and Arkansas City, Kansas. Until 1946, a military base and airport facility for pilot training, aircraft construction and maintenance were on-site. The area was then developed as an industrial park. Operators put industrial wastes in two on-site landfills. In 1982, a Kansas Department of Health and Environment survey found contamination in water supply wells. Further investigations found sitewide soil and groundwater contamination. EPA added the site to the National Priorities List in 1986. Cleanup included groundwater treatment and monitoring of natural breakdown processes to clean up groundwater. EPA also capped two areas with concrete to help prevent the movement of precipitation and surface water runoff through area soils. Groundwater monitoring is ongoing to further investigate and define the extent of contamination. An assessment of potential risk to aquatic life in an on-site creek is also ongoing. About 20 commercial and industrial businesses are active on-site.  The Cowley County Economic Development Partnership is also on-site. It supports workforce and professional development in the county. A community mental health organization and a recycling center are also on-site. 
Last updated October 2025

As of December 2024, EPA had data on 19 on-site businesses. These businesses employed 1,318 people and generated an estimated $500,914,115 in annual sales revenue. For additional information click here.

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WRIGHT GROUND WATER CONTAMINATION

The Wright Ground Water Contamination Superfund site is in Wright, Kansas. The 8-acre area is part of a larger, 100-acre area of groundwater contamination that is under investigation. Sampling of local wells found pesticides, heavy metals and volatile organic compounds in area groundwater. Since the city of Wright did not have a municipal water supply, all homes received water from private wells. EPA added the site to the National Priorities List in 1996. In 1997, EPA extended a municipal water line for area residents. Cleanup included monitoring of natural processes to clean up groundwater contamination and land use controls. EPA transferred the site to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment on October 1, 2024 to continue groundwater monitoring. The site remains in continued residential, commercial and agricultural use. 
Last updated October 2025

As of December 2024, EPA did not have economic data related to on-site businesses, or economic data were not applicable due to site use. For additional information click here.

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Last updated on October 31, 2025