The LaBounty Site covers 8 acres on the western edge of the Cedar River floodplain in Charles City, Iowa. From 1953 to 1977, Salsbury Laboratories Inc. disposed of over 6 million cubic feet of pharmaceutical sludges there, contaminating groundwater and surface water. EPA added the site to the National Priorities List in September 1983 and deleted it in October 1993 after cleanup goals were met. Part of the site now serves as equipment storage for a local business, and a Restrictive Covenant filed in 1980 and renewed in 1982 permanently limits excavation, building construction, and material storage without written approval from EPA and state agencies.
The main contaminants are arsenic, 1,1,2-trichloroethane, and orthonitroaniline. These chemicals affected groundwater and surface water in the Cedar River. Potential exposure pathways include soil ingestion, skin contact, inhalation of dust or vapors, and groundwater contact. Land use and groundwater use restrictions are in place to prevent contact with capped wastes on-site.
Salsbury Laboratories installed a groundwater monitoring system in 1979 and capped the waste disposal area in 1980, but the cap did not stop contamination below the water table. In 1985, EPA and Salsbury entered a consent order requiring a subsurface groundwater diversion wall to redirect clean groundwater around the contaminated area. That wall was completed in 1986. A tile drain system was later tested and found to reduce arsenic by only 2 to 3 percent, leading EPA to approve its permanent decommissioning in 2023. The responsible party, now represented by Zoetis, continues monitoring groundwater and surface water.
A 2024 risk assessment found arsenic levels in the water are safe for people eating fish or having incidental contact with it, and nearby aquatic communities look similar to those upstream and downstream. However, the seventh Five-Year Review, completed in October 2025, deferred a protectiveness finding due to insufficient data. EPA is now requiring further evaluation of stream and aquifer interaction, aquifer classification for the Upper Cedar Valley and alluvial aquifers, and a baseline human health risk assessment.
Community members with questions can contact the EPA Community Involvement Coordinator. The Technical Assistance Services for Communities program offers free independent help to understand the science and regulations involved. Site documents are available through EPA's Superfund site profile system, and records can also be reviewed in person at the Charles City Public Library, 106 Milwaukee Mall, Charles City, Iowa 50616.
