Former Custom Cleaners

Overview

A dry cleaning business operated at 3517 Southern Avenue in Memphis, Tennessee from 1945 until the mid-1990s. It left behind soil, indoor air, and groundwater contaminated mainly with tetrachloroethylene (PCE), a solvent used in dry cleaning. EPA added the site to the Superfund National Priorities List (NPL) in August 2017. The NPL is the federal list of the most serious hazardous waste sites in the country.

Nine contaminants of concern have been identified, found in soil and air. They include chloroethene (vinyl chloride), chloroform, cis-1,2-dichloroethene, hexane, naphthalene, tetrachloroethene, and trichloroethene. Tetrachloroethene and trichloroethene were detected in both soil and air samples. PCE has been found above Safe Drinking Water Act standards in indoor air and subsurface soil.

EPA split the cleanup into two operable units (OUs). OU1 covers soil contamination. EPA approved a soil cleanup plan in September 2018 using In-Situ Thermal Desorption (ISTD), which heats soil to remove contaminants, combined with Soil Vapor Extraction (SVE), which pulls contaminated vapors out of the ground. Remedial action began in March 2022, funded through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and soil cleanup work completed in November 2023. OU2 covers groundwater. EPA has installed 15 monitoring wells since 2019 to study the contamination, and a removal action for groundwater is estimated between February and April 2027. No viable responsible parties were found to pay for cleanup, so the work is funded through the EPA Superfund program with taxpayer dollars.

EPA has determined that human exposure is currently under control, meaning there are no unacceptable pathways for people to contact contamination right now. Institutional controls, including zoning restrictions, are in place to prevent residential development or other incompatible land uses. EPA notes that groundwater migration status cannot yet be fully determined, so monitoring will continue. A five-year review is estimated between August and October 2027.

Community members can stay involved through public notices, public meetings, and fact sheets that EPA provides throughout the cleanup process. A Community Involvement Plan is available for the site. Site records can be viewed at the Benjamin L. Hooks Central Library at 3030 Poplar Avenue in Memphis, Tennessee. Two EPA staff members are available to answer questions: Ron Tolliver, the Community Involvement Coordinator, and Allan Hernandez, the Remedial Project Manager.