The Caldwell Lace Leather Company operated a 57-acre tannery in Auburn, Kentucky, disposing of tannery waste on the property between 1972 and 1985. That waste disposal contaminated the soil and groundwater, leading EPA to add the site to the Superfund National Priorities List in August 1990. The site owner covered the landfill with soil and fenced it in 1985, then completed a formal closure plan in 1989. Solid waste remains buried two feet below the ground surface in the landfill area today.
EPA completed a remedial investigation and feasibility study between March 1990 and June 1994. The agency selected "No Action" as the cleanup remedy in June 1994, finding that site contamination did not pose a threat to human health or the environment. Chemicals such as barium and chromium were detected during monitoring but at levels consistent with background conditions rather than site-related contamination. The Kentucky Department for Environmental Protection conducted groundwater and surface water monitoring from 1996 to 2024, completing twenty sampling rounds.
Human exposure at the site is under control. EPA's risk assessment, which included consideration of children's health, found no unacceptable exposure pathways for current or reasonably anticipated future land uses. Physical cleanup construction is complete for the entire site. The site achieved sitewide ready for anticipated reuse status in September 2015 and is now being considered for deletion from the National Priorities List.
Parts of the property are currently in agricultural use. The landfarm area serves as pastureland, and the landfill area is covered with trees. Institutional controls are in place to limit land uses and prevent residential development that would not be appropriate given the cleanup level. EPA has recommended that the landowner or state continue monitoring and maintain the landfill cover. Anyone considering future use or redevelopment of the landfill area should contact the Kentucky Department for Environmental Protection.
EPA keeps the community informed through fact sheets, public notices, and public meetings. Eight publicly available documents and fourteen deletion docket documents are available for review. A public information repository holds records related to Superfund activities at the site.
