FCX, Inc. (Washington Plant)

Overview

The FCX, Inc. Washington Plant is a 12-acre former farm supply distribution center in northwest Washington, North Carolina. The facility packaged pesticides, herbicides, and tobacco-treating chemicals from 1945 to 1985. Starting in the early 1970s, pesticide wastes and other agricultural chemicals were dumped in a large on-site trench. The EPA added the site to the National Priorities List (NPL) in March 1989 because of contamination in groundwater, surface water, and soil.

Thirty-seven contaminants of concern have been identified at the site. They include volatile organic compounds such as benzene, chloroform, and toluene, pesticides including aldrin, dieldrin, endrin, and toxaphene, and heavy metals like lead, mercury, manganese, and zinc. Most contaminants were found in groundwater. Lead, mercury, manganese, and zinc also showed up in surface water.

Cleanup has been organized into two operable units (OUs). OU 02 addressed soil. The EPA excavated and consolidated contaminated soil from the burial trench and former blending building between 1990 and 1996, and determined no further soil action was needed after 2005. OU 01 addressed groundwater. The EPA first selected pump-and-treat systems in 1993, then shifted in 2005 to monitored natural attenuation, which means sampling to confirm that contamination is breaking down on its own. In 2024, the EPA transferred groundwater monitoring responsibility to the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ), which now samples every two years. Physical construction across the site is complete. Human exposure to contamination is under control, and contaminated groundwater migration is stabilized with no unacceptable discharge to surface water. The site is not yet deleted from the NPL and has not achieved sitewide ready-for-anticipated-reuse status. The EPA completed a fourth Five-Year Review on September 5, 2025, and is reviewing soil sample data to determine if additional institutional controls are needed for some parcels.

The site is already seeing productive reuse. Park Boat Company runs a boat storage and distribution business in the former FCX warehouse. In 2010, the North Carolina Department of Transportation built the U.S. Route 17 Washington Bypass across part of the property. As of December 2024, three businesses operated on site, employing 17 people with combined annual sales of about $1.3 million.

Community members can stay involved through public notices, public meetings, and interviews that the EPA conducts as part of its review process. During the fourth Five-Year Review, the EPA interviewed neighboring residents and business owners about the remedy. Documents related to the site are available at the George and Laura Brown Library in Washington, North Carolina. Residents with questions can also contact the EPA staff assigned to the site.