The Galesburg/Koppers Co. site covers 105 acres along Illinois Route 41, about two miles south of Galesburg, Illinois. The facility has treated railroad ties with heat, pressure, creosote, and coal tar since 1907. Past operations also used pentachlorophenol (PCP) and fuel oil. Waste disposal practices from those years contaminated both soil and groundwater at and around the site. EPA added the site to the National Priorities List (NPL) on September 8, 1983.
Contaminants in groundwater include polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), naphthalene, benzo(a)pyrene, pentachlorophenol, and phenol, among others. Soil contains naphthalene, pentachlorophenol, phenol, and PAHs. EPA identified these chemicals based on unacceptable risks to human health or the environment through ingestion and contact exposure pathways.
Illinois EPA and EPA selected a cleanup remedy in 1989. It called for biological treatment of contaminated soil and pumping and treating contaminated groundwater. Contaminated soil was excavated and successfully treated. In 2001, the agencies updated the groundwater remedy to use in-situ (in-place) bioremediation instead. Construction of the remedial action was completed on September 28, 2001. The site achieved sitewide ready for anticipated reuse status on April 9, 2020. Wood treatment operations continue on the site today, and as of December 2024, one on-site business employed 41 people and generated about $19.2 million in annual sales.
A fifth five-year review completed in September 2025 found that the remedy is currently protective of human health and the environment. Human exposure is under control and groundwater migration is stabilized. However, additional actions are still needed for long-term protection. These include reviewing existing institutional controls and identifying any new ones needed, estimating how long it will take for groundwater contaminant levels to reach cleanup goals, evaluating whether updated 2010 naphthalene standards require a new decision document, testing groundwater for PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) contamination, and resuming annual monitoring of wells around the North Trench. The next five-year review is scheduled for completion in September 2030. The site has not yet been deleted from the NPL.
Community members can contact the EPA's Community Involvement Coordinator or Remedial Project Manager. Site records, including 11 key documents and an administrative record of 113 documents, are available through EPA's Superfund records system.
