The Vestal Water Supply Well 4-2 sits in Vestal, New York and serves as a municipal drinking water source. Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from a nearby bulk chemical handling facility contaminated the well, prompting its shutdown in 1980. EPA added the site to its National Priorities List (NPL) in September 1983, making it eligible for federal Superfund cleanup funding and oversight.
The main contamination concern was VOCs in groundwater. About 26 cubic yards of contaminated soil were also removed from around a leach pit at Monarch Chemical Corporation, located 200 feet south of the well. That soil removal addressed the source of the contamination reaching the aquifer.
The Town of Vestal installed an air stripping system with carbon filtration in 1988 to treat groundwater before it reaches residents. The State also reached a settlement with three potentially responsible parties in 1985, requiring cleanup and source-area remediation. Contaminant levels in the untreated groundwater entering the well have since dropped below drinking water standards, though the treatment system remains in place to ensure safe water.
Physical construction of the cleanup is complete. Human exposure is under control, and EPA has determined that contaminated groundwater migration is stabilized with no unacceptable discharge to surface water. EPA continues monitoring to confirm the contamination stays within the original area. The site was deleted from the NPL on September 30, 1999, after cleanup goals were met. The site is not yet sitewide ready for anticipated use, meaning one or more cleanup criteria have not been fully met, though redevelopment may be occurring or possible on portions of the property.
Community members with questions can contact EPA's Remedial Project Manager or Community Involvement Coordinator. The administrative record and other site documents are available for public review at EPA Region 2, 290 Broadway, 18th Floor, New York City.
