The Kaydon Corp. site covers 40 acres in Muskegon, Michigan, where bearings and bearing assemblies are still manufactured today. The property was previously used by White Motors Company to produce engine blocks until 1941. Wastewater disposal practices contaminated soil, surface water, and groundwater until 1968, when those operations stopped. EPA added the site to the National Priorities List in February 1990.
The contaminants found at the site include metals and chlorinated organic solvents. Specifically, those are cadmium, chromium, lead, nickel, 1,1-dichloroethane, 1,1-dichloroethene, 1,1,1-trichloroethane, and xylenes. These contaminants reached the soil, surface water, and groundwater, partly through discharge into on-site seepage pits and Ruddiman Creek.
Kaydon Corporation is the responsible party and has led cleanup efforts. The company began removing contaminated soil and sludge in 1984 and installed a pump-and-treat groundwater system in 1988. The overall cleanup remedy included removing contaminated soils and running a groundwater purge system to bring contamination levels down. Soil cleanup standards were set for industrial use, which continues on the property. The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality and Kaydon Corporation are currently evaluating whether to shut down the groundwater extraction system.
Physical construction of the cleanup is complete. EPA has determined that human exposure is under control, with no unacceptable exposure pathways identified. Groundwater migration is also under control, and contaminated groundwater is stabilized with no unacceptable discharge to surface water. Contaminant levels in on-site monitoring wells now meet Michigan's standards. However, the site has not yet reached a sitewide ready-for-anticipated-reuse status, meaning some cleanup goals or required land-use controls are not fully in place across the entire site. Institutional controls, including zoning restrictions, are in place to prevent residential and other incompatible uses. One on-site business currently employs 160 people and generates about $32.3 million in annual sales.
Community members with questions can contact the EPA's Community Involvement Coordinator or Remedial Project Manager.
