PACIFIC HIDE & FUR RECYCLING CO. IDAHO EPA ID# IDD098812878

EPA Region 10 Bannock County Pocatello 2nd Congressional District Other Names: McCarty/Pacific Hide & Fur

Last Update: August, 2007

Site Description

The McCarty's/Pacific Hide & Fur Superfund Site consists of approximately 17 acres located along the northwestern edge of Pocatello, Idaho on State Highway 30 West. The site was used as a metal salvage yard from the late 1950s to 1983. The current owners of the site are McCarty's, Inc., Pacific Hide and Fur Depot, Inc., and Union Pacific Railroad. A large gravel pit, approximately 20 feet deep and extending over roughly three acres, had been used for the disposal of scrap metal including vehicles, truck bodies, machinery, wire rope, tin cans, battery casings, as well as electrical transformer carcasses and capacitors containing polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). Pacific Steel Recycling currently operates a scrap metal recycling facility on a portion of the site.

The Portneuf River is located about 1,100 feet south of the site. The population of the City of Pocatello is approximately 45,000; however, the immediate vicinity of the site is sparsely populated. The city is supplied with drinking water from wells within three miles of the site. Private and industrial wells draw from the lower aquifer that lies under the site.

Site Responsibility: This site has been addressed through Federal and potentially responsible parties' actions.

NPL Listing History	Dates
Proposed Date:	09/08/1983
Removed Date:
Withdrawal Date:
Final Date:	09/21/1984
Deleted Date:	11/04/1999

Threats and Contaminants

Media Affected: Soil & Sludges
Soils, both on-site and off-site, are contaminated with PCBs, lead and other inorganic compounds from prior waste disposal activities. Adverse health effects may result from accidentally ingesting or making direct contact with contaminated soil.


Cleanup Progress

Early Actions: An emergency action conducted by EPA in 1983 removed over 500 capacitors and 100 cubic yards of highly contaminated soil (PCBs).

Long-Term Actions: The first long-term action, selected in June 1988, was completed in October, 1993. The action included excavation and off-site disposal of PCBs and commingled PCB/lead-contaminated soil to 25 parts per million (ppm) PCBs. Lead classified as hazardous waste was treated prior to disposal in a RCRA-permitted landfill. A total of 13,213 tons of soil (9,111 tons required treatment), and 2,094 tons of scrap and debris were removed. Cleanup was performed by Idaho Power under an EPA Administrative Order. The second long-term action, selected in September 1995, was completed in December 1996. This action included excavation of soil exceeding 1,000 ppm lead, on-site treatment of lead contaminated soil classified as hazardous waste, and off-site disposal at a solid waste landfill of treated and untreated soil. A total of 21,857 tons of soil (9,985 tons required treatment) was removed.

The responsible parties requested, and EPA issued, an Explanation of Significant Differences (ESD) to allow the clean up of soil to less than 400 ppm lead which allows for unrestricted future use of the property. This additional cleanup was completed in 1997 by Pacific Hide and Union Pacific Railroad under an EPA Administrative Order. No CERCLA institutional controls are required; however the State of Idaho has required institutional controls restricting future excavation in one area (measuring 275 feet by 350 feet) in order to address the State of Idaho's concern regarding potential residual contamination. Four calendar quarters of groundwater monitoring and implementation of institutional controls concluded the remedial work at the site.

One of two final Consent Decrees between EPA and the settling parties was entered in December 1998; the second Consent Decree was entered in February 1999. The groundwater monitoring confirmed that none of the contamination had reached the groundwater beneath the site. All remedial actions have been concluded and the site was deleted from the NPL on November 4, 1999.

No CERCLA periodic (five year) reviews are required for this site.



Regional Contacts

SITE MANAGER(S):	Not Assigned
E-MAIL ADDRESS:
PHONE NUMBER:
COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT COORDINATOR:	Sue Skinner
E-MAIL ADDRESS	skinner.susan@epa.gov
PHONE NUMBER:	(208)282-4326

Information pertaining to this site is housed at the following location(s):
Marshall Public Library (Administrative Records)
113 South Garfield
Pocatello, ID 83204

EPA Region 10 Superfund Records Center (Administrative Records)
1200 Sixth Avenue, ECL-076
Seattle, WA 98101