The Galey and Lord Plant is a former textile dyeing and finishing facility on 234 acres in Society Hill, South Carolina. It operated from 1966 to 2016, processing cotton and synthetic fabrics and generating contaminated wastewater. The site sits in a floodplain next to Cedar Creek and the Great Pee Dee River. EPA added it to the National Priorities List in March 2022, which means it qualifies for the agency's long-term Superfund cleanup process.
The main contaminants are metals, PFOA (perfluorooctanoic acid), and PFOS (perfluorooctanesulfonic acid), a class of chemicals known together as PFAS (per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances). These have been found in the wetlands and sediments of Cedar Creek and the Great Pee Dee River. During Hurricane Florence in 2018, flooding caused wastewater treatment basins to overflow into those waterways. Downstream areas include a fishery, wetlands, critical habitat for an endangered species, and a public boat ramp and park, all of which face potential contamination risks. Eating fish from these waters poses a potential health threat. EPA also knows that wastewater treatment sludge from the facility was spread on farm fields in Chesterfield, Darlington, and Marlboro counties from 1993 to 2013, and is working with the state to assess health risks from that sludge.
EPA ran three removal actions between February 2018 and March 2020. Workers cleared about 2,400 abandoned containers, 440,000 gallons of caustic solution, 100,000 gallons of liquid waste, 53,000 pounds of solid waste, and 17 containers of solid dyes from the property. The site is divided into five operable units covering different geographic areas and cleanup problems. A remedial investigation for the first operable unit began in September 2023. Studies for three more units started in March 2025, and the fifth unit's study began in August 2025. EPA estimates the site-wide remedy will be selected between November 2026 and January 2027. Long-term cleanup construction has not yet started. EPA notes there is currently insufficient data to determine whether human exposure and groundwater migration are under control.
Community members can get involved through public meetings and other participation opportunities. EPA held a Remedial Investigation and Feasibility Study kick-off meeting in September 2023 and a Public Information Meeting with the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry in January 2024. No meetings are currently scheduled, but EPA will announce new events as they are set. Residents with questions can contact the EPA staff assigned to the site.
