The Packaging Corporation of America site covers about 50 acres in Manistee County, Michigan. It once housed a pulping mill that made materials for corrugated boxes. A waste disposal area with eight lagoons left soil and groundwater contaminated with arsenic, chromium, lead, nickel, barium, manganese, vanadium, copper, and several organic compounds including phenol, benzoic acid, and 2-butanone. That contaminated groundwater discharges to nearby Manistee Lake.
The site was proposed to the National Priorities List (NPL) in December 1982 and became final on that list in September 1983. A remedial investigation started in March 1984. The final cleanup decision, called a Record of Decision, was issued in September 1993. The selected remedy for the main operable unit is long-term monitoring of surface water, along with capping the lagoons. Physical construction finished in September 1998.
The Packaging Corporation of America is the potentially responsible party and has worked with federal and state authorities throughout the cleanup. Administrative orders of consent were issued in March 1985 and April 1994 to guide that work. Institutional controls are also in place, including zoning restrictions that block residential development and other incompatible land uses.
Current EPA performance measures show that human exposure is under control. There are no unacceptable exposure pathways through soil or groundwater. Groundwater migration is also under control, meaning contamination is stable and there is no unacceptable discharge to surface water. The site reached sitewide ready for anticipated use status in March 2008, meaning all cleanup goals for current and future land uses have been met. Operation and maintenance activities continue, and if future monitoring shows unacceptable environmental risks, additional cleanup will be required.
Community members who want to learn more or get involved can visit two local repositories that hold site records: the Manistee County Library at 95 Maple Street in Manistee and the Stronach Township Hall. An online collection of key site documents is also available through the EPA's Superfund database.
