Brine Service Company

Overview

The Brine Service Company site sits in Corpus Christi, Texas, where oil field and refinery wastes were dumped into pits from 1946 through the 1960s. Workers discovered the site in 1997 during pipeline excavation. Sampling confirmed contamination in 2000, and EPA added the site to the National Priorities List (NPL) in September 2002. The site has one operable unit (OU01) covering the entire property, and EPA issued a Record of Decision (ROD) in August 2020 laying out the cleanup plan.

Contaminants at the site include benzene, 3-methylphenol (m-cresol), 4-methylphenol (p-cresol), arsenic, lead, mercury, selenium, zinc, ethylbenzene, and C5-C8 aliphatic hydrocarbons. These are found in groundwater, soil, sludge, soil gas, and free-phase liquid contamination known as NAPL (non-aqueous phase liquid). The South Pit alone holds about 15,000 cubic yards of sludge and 53,000 cubic yards of reworked soil and waste mixtures. The contaminated groundwater plume covers roughly 5.1 acres. EPA assessments indicate human exposure is currently under control, but contaminated groundwater migration has not been stabilized.

Cleanup actions are underway on two fronts. At the North Pit, about 1,250 cubic yards of surface soil will be dug out to 18 inches deep and sent to a regulated off-site disposal facility. Excavated areas will be refilled with clean soil and gravel. This work is tentatively scheduled for January through March 2026 and is expected to take about 60 days. At the South Pit, a sediment cap was installed in January 2018 in a nearby ditch to stop contamination from moving off-site. The broader remedy for OU01 also includes solidification and stabilization of waste in place, free product recovery, monitored natural attenuation for groundwater, recycling of materials off-site, and institutional controls restricting residential and other incompatible land uses. A Consent Decree finalizing EPA oversight was signed in November 2024. Physical construction of the full cleanup is not yet complete, and the site has not been deleted from the NPL.

The site currently supports two on-site businesses employing four people, generating about $707,340 in annual sales. Zoning restrictions are in place to prevent residential development and other uses that could increase exposure to remaining contamination.

Community members can review the administrative record at the Owen R. Hopkins Public Library (3202 McKinzie Rd., Corpus Christi, TX 78410) Monday through Saturday during business hours. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) also holds records at its Central Records Building in Austin. EPA held a public meeting in September 2019 to present the proposed cleanup plan. For questions or updates, contact EPA Community Involvement Coordinator Jason McKinney or TCEQ Site Project Manager Cora Beltran.