Palmetto Recycling, Inc. sits on a 1.5-acre property in Columbia, South Carolina. The facility processed lead batteries from 1979 to 1983. Operators left wastes in unlined pits and drums and piled unstabilized battery casings on-site, contaminating the soil with lead. The EPA added the site to the Superfund National Priorities List in 1987.
Cleanup began before the site was formally listed. Between 1984 and 1986, federal agencies and the responsible party collected 10,800 gallons of contaminated water, removed 100 drums of liquid waste, and excavated 365 tons of contaminated soil for off-site disposal. The EPA completed a formal remedial investigation in May 1992 and selected a final remedy in March 1995. The main remedial action ran from April 1998 through June 1999, when the responsible party removed an additional 947 cubic yards of contaminated material. Construction was declared complete on July 21, 1999.
By 2000, the EPA confirmed that no contamination remained above health-based levels. The site was deleted from the National Priorities List on October 13, 2000. A Five-Year Review completed on June 7, 2004, confirmed the cleanup continues to protect human health and the environment. Human exposure is under control, and all cleanup goals for current and anticipated future land uses have been met. The site now supports residential land use and achieved sitewide ready-for-anticipated-reuse status on June 26, 2006. No additional cleanup or ongoing reviews are required.
Throughout the cleanup process, the EPA kept the community informed through public notices, interviews, and information meetings. Because the site has been deleted from the National Priorities List, no further community review activities are planned. The site profile remains available for historical reference. Members of the public can view site records at the Northeast Regional Library at 7490 Park Lane Road in Columbia, South Carolina 29223. For questions, contact the EPA's Remedial Project Manager.
