Upjohn Facility

Overview

The Upjohn Facility is a 2-acre former pharmaceutical manufacturing site in Barceloneta, Puerto Rico. It was added to the National Priorities List (NPL) in 1984 after an underground storage tank leak in 1982 released about 15,300 gallons of waste material containing carbon tetrachloride, a toxic liquid, into soil and groundwater. The site is organized into two operable units (OUs) for cleanup purposes. Construction of remedial actions finished in 1998, and the site reached sitewide ready for anticipated reuse status in 2016. It remains on the NPL, with long-term cleanup still underway.

Carbon tetrachloride is the main contaminant of concern. It was found in groundwater at two locations: the Garro Artesian zone and a pump-and-treat area, both part of Operable Unit 1. Metals in groundwater also came from nearby industrial activity and construction of monitoring wells. Upjohn stopped all use of carbon tetrachloride by 1986 and quickly provided alternative water supplies to affected residents.

Cleanup work has included installing 22 groundwater monitoring wells, covering the tank farm area with a fiberglass-reinforced concrete pad to stop rainwater from soaking into soil, and running 19 vacuum extraction wells that removed more than 12,000 gallons of carbon tetrachloride. A pump-and-treat system has been operating since 1982 and was expanded by September 1998. Contaminated groundwater is pumped out, treated by air stripping, and discharged into an on-site sinkhole. A replacement public water supply well came online in December 1995. Operation and maintenance activities under EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) oversight began in January 2009 and remain ongoing.

Current monitoring includes daily measurements of water pressure and flow rates and monthly to semi-annual sampling for carbon tetrachloride. Five-Year Reviews confirm the remedy is protective of human health and the environment, and human exposure is under control with no unacceptable exposure pathways. Contaminated groundwater is stable in its original area with no unacceptable discharge to surface water. In September 2023, EPA issued a Record of Decision Amendment for Operable Unit 1, updating performance standards, remedial action objectives, and adding institutional controls. The most recent Five-Year Review was completed in May 2023, and the next is estimated for May through July 2028. Cleanup will continue until groundwater meets the standard for carbon tetrachloride.

Community members can review site records at the Office of the Mayor in Barceloneta, the EPA Caribbean Environmental Protection Division in Guaynabo, the EPA Region 2 Superfund Records Center in New York, and the Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources in San Juan. Community update fact sheets are available in both English and Spanish. For questions, residents can contact the EPA staff assigned to the site.