Cemetery Dump

Overview

Between the late 1960s and early 1970s, someone illegally dumped 300 to 600 barrels of industrial waste on a 4-acre property in Rose Township, Michigan. The site ended up on the federal Superfund program's National Priorities List (NPL) in September 1983, flagging it as a priority for cleanup due to risks to human health and the environment.

EPA identified 24 chemical contaminants at the site across soil, solid waste, and groundwater. Metals found there include arsenic, cadmium, chromium, lead, mercury, nickel, and zinc. Organic chemicals include benzene, chlorobenzene, dichloromethane (also called methylene chloride), toluene, and xylene. Base neutral acids were also detected in groundwater.

Cleanup was organized into two operable units. The first focused on excavation and offsite disposal, selected as the remedy in September 1985. Workers fenced the site, dug up roughly 250 drums and drum fragments, and removed about 10,000 cubic yards of contaminated soil. The second operable unit called for no further action with monitoring, under a decision issued in September 1989. Construction of the full remedy was finished in 1991, and the state confirmed that removing the contaminated material addressed both soil and groundwater problems.

EPA deleted the site from the NPL in April 1995 after determining cleanup goals had been met. A five-year review completed in July 1994 confirmed that cleanup actions remained protective. Human exposure is currently under control, and contaminated groundwater is stabilized within its original area with no unacceptable discharge to surface water. The site reached sitewide ready for anticipated reuse status in June 2006. Institutional controls, such as zoning restrictions that prevent residential development, remain in place to limit exposure to any contamination that stays on the property. EPA will not conduct additional five-year reviews now that the site has been removed from the NPL, though the ready-for-reuse determination can change if site conditions or new information warrants it.

Community members or others with questions about the site can reach the EPA Remedial Project Manager, Robert Thompson.