The Nutmeg Valley Road site covers about 28 acres in Wolcott, Connecticut, where metalworking and metal-finishing shops operated starting in the 1940s. Chemical dumping at two machine shops contaminated nearby private drinking water wells, leading EPA to add the site to the National Priorities List in 1989. The site was previously associated with businesses known as Alpine Electronic Co and Nutmeg Screw Machine Products Inc.
Manganese is the contaminant of concern, found in groundwater across the entire site. Groundwater also contained volatile organic compounds, heavy metals, and cyanide. Soil was contaminated with volatile organic compounds and heavy metals, including lead and copper. The main health risks to nearby residents came from accidental ingestion of or direct contact with contaminated water or soil.
EPA took a removal action between September 1991 and January 1992, pulling about 1,150 tons of electroplating sludge and contaminated soil from two unlined lagoons at the PAR Finishing facility. That waste was shipped to a disposal facility in Michigan. Early response actions also provided safe drinking water to affected residents and reduced contamination in the industrial water supply. A combined remedial investigation and feasibility study ran from 1996 through 2004. EPA issued a Record of Decision on September 28, 2004, selecting No Further Action for the entire site, because contaminant levels were naturally decreasing with no widespread groundwater plume.
The Town of Wolcott passed a groundwater ordinance in 2004 restricting all groundwater use on site and requiring well abandonment. By July 2005, property owners had abandoned their wells and connected to the public water supply. EPA deleted the site from the National Priorities List on September 23, 2005. Human exposure is under control, and contaminated groundwater is stabilized with no unacceptable discharge to surface water. Five-year reviews were completed in 2009 and 2014. Today, seven on-site businesses employ 36 people and generate about $5.9 million in annual sales revenue.
Institutional controls remain in place, including groundwater use restrictions and zoning requirements that prevent residential development incompatible with the cleanup level. These controls stay in effect as long as contamination or cleanup components remain on site. Community members can view site records at the Wolcott Public Library or at the EPA Region 1 Records and Information Center in Boston. For questions, contact the EPA representatives or the Connecticut Department of Environmental Services using the information below.
