Pepper Steel & Alloys, Inc.

Overview

Pepper Steel & Alloys covers 25 acres near Medley, Florida, about 10 miles northwest of Miami. From the mid-1960s to the mid-1980s, machinery recycling, waste oil dumping, and abandoned equipment left the soil contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), lead, and arsenic. EPA added the site to the Superfund National Priorities List in 1984 after finding PCB-contaminated oil in shallow soil.

The cleanup remedy was selected in 1986. Workers removed free oil from the site, then excavated soil that exceeded set concentration limits for each contaminant. That contaminated soil was mixed with cement and formed into a solid mass, called a monolith, which remains on site. Groundwater under the site did not require cleanup. Ongoing monitoring confirms that contamination is not leaking from the monolith into groundwater, and all measured contaminant levels stay below federal maximum contaminant levels.

Restrictive Covenants now limit the site to commercial and industrial uses. They prohibit groundwater wells, ban excavation near the monolith, and require written approval from both EPA and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection before any construction that could disturb contaminated soil. Because the property changed hands frequently, finalizing these institutional controls took time, but the site reached Site Wide Ready for Anticipated Use status in June 2019. The site has since been put back to productive use, including a boat manufacturing facility, a heavy machinery parts company, and a commercial truck storage area. Four businesses on site employed 303 people and generated about $17.3 million in annual sales as of December 2024.

A Five-Year Review completed in August 2022 confirmed the remedy is fully protective. EPA found no unacceptable exposure pathways and confirmed human exposure is under control across the entire site. The next Five-Year Review is estimated between August and October 2027. EPA expects the site to be eligible for deletion from the Superfund program within the next few years.

Community members can stay informed through EPA's community involvement activities, which include public notices, interviews, and public meetings. The public information repository for site records is the Miami-Dade County Public Library at 101 West Flagler in Miami. For direct questions, residents can contact the Community Involvement Coordinator or the Remedial Project Manager.