The Double Eagle Refinery Co. site covers 12 acres in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. From 1929 through the early 1980s, the facility re-refined used motor oils using acid treatment and filtration. That process produced roughly 80,000 gallons of oily sludge every month. Operators eventually placed that sludge in on-site impoundments and lagoons, and the facility kept accepting waste oil for storage until 1980. EPA added the site to the National Priorities List (NPL) in 1989.
Contamination spread across soil, groundwater, sediment, and sludge. More than 60 chemicals have been identified as contaminants of concern. Heavy metals found at the site include lead, arsenic, antimony, mercury, cadmium, and nickel. Volatile organic compounds such as benzene, trichloroethene, and tetrachloroethene are present in groundwater and other media. Pesticides including aldrin, chlordane, and heptachlor, along with polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), also contaminate the site.
Cleanup work ran from the mid-1990s through 1999 and involved excavating, stabilizing on-site, and disposing off-site of about 143,465 cubic yards of contaminated material. Groundwater was monitored from 1996 through 2003, with additional investigation by the U.S. Geological Survey in 2002. Testing showed contaminant levels were falling and that nearby groundwater is not used as a drinking water supply. All monitoring wells were plugged in 2005. EPA removed the site from the NPL on August 21, 2008. Multiple consent decrees finalized between 2008 and 2010 formalized cleanup responsibilities. The site achieved sitewide ready-for-anticipated-reuse status in 2007.
Today, human exposure is under control and contaminated groundwater migration is stabilized with no unacceptable discharge to surface water. Institutional controls remain in place, and well-drilling records are monitored to prevent new drinking water wells in the area. EPA conducts five-year reviews to confirm the remedy stays protective. The most recent review was completed on September 26, 2022, and the next is estimated for May through July 2027. The site is privately owned and currently not in use.
Community members with questions can contact the EPA Community Involvement Coordinator or the Remedial Project Manager. For state-related questions, contact the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality.
