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Tuesday
March 16, 2010 Since 1922 |
Legal fight brews over dump site
By Rachael Seeley
Baytown Sun Published July 1, 2006 Representatives from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) and the Cox Road Group met with concerned Liberty County residents on Thursday night to discuss clean up efforts at the Cox Road Dump Site.
According to a TCEQ Investigation released in 2003, the dump, which is located about a mile north of FM 1413 and south of Dayton, is about 83 acres of exposed industrial waste.
Since it was abandoned in about 1983, the topsoil has eroded away to reveal a brown, sticky substance.
“If you look at aerial photos of the site, most of it is totally devoid of vegetation. It’s so contaminated that nothing will really grow on it… It’s kind of like a moonscape,” Donald Maiersonm Attorney for about 350 nearby residents and property owners said.
Maierson is naming several entities who used the site, as well as the investment firm that sold many nearby homeowners their properties without disclosing its existence, in class action lawsuit under the negligence, nuisance and trespass law.
Several residents who live close to the site expressed concern that contaminants may have migrated to their properties during flooding events, polluting their soil and putting the health of them and their families at risk.
Billie Rowsey, who lives about one and three-fourths of a mile away from the dump site, says when the wind is just right, she has seen “huge, mushroom-shaped toxic cocktail clouds” form above it, and has documented these photos on her website, http://groups.msn.com/1413residents
“Cross winds go over the site and pick up chemicals,” Rowsey said. “You can see them falling to the ground.”
TCEQ Spokesperson Terry Clawson said Rowsey, or any other resident with similar concerns should report them the TCEQ for further investigation.
“We take all complaints very seriously, so if she really thinks that she saw that, she should call the Houston office, and if we think it is appropriate, we will send an investigator out.”
The Cox Group (CRG) has voluntarily offered to clean up the dump site under the direction of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
The Cox Group is comprised of the Exxon Mobil Corporation, The Lubrizol Corporation and the United States Steel Corporation, just three of as many as 55 companies who utilized the site to dispose of industrial waste while it was in operation from 1970 through 1983.
Ien Webster, An environmental engineer for CRG told a group of about 50 people in the Dayton High School Cafeteria that the clean up process should be completed by early 2008, though he did not specifically mention if or how the waste materials will be extracted and disposed of.
Webster said licensed engineers, geologists and other environmentalists will perform the work under the watchful eye of the Texas Risk Reduction Program (TRRP).
The CRG plans to begin preliminary clean-up efforts immediately. First, grass and brush will be trimmed to ensure accurate surveying and boundary marking, then 9 thousand feet of fence will be installed around the area and warning signs posted every 200 feet. Next, drilling and sampling of soil and groundwater will be conducted to determine the extent of contamination.
The results of these tests will be used to determine the risks associated with the site, and will serve as the basis for a remedial action plan, which will be submitted to the TCEQ.
Karl Christen, who lives just two and a half miles from the site, was pleased with the efforts CRG is making to rectify the landfill situation,
“The companies are voluntarily coming in and making an effort to clean it up. I think they are finally getting started to do something,” Christen said.
Despite that, he still has reservations about the safety of his water wells and said he sometimes smells contaminants.
A TCEQ investigation conducted in 2003 revealed high concentrations of lead and mercury sometimes more then 10 times higher then normal background levels throughout the 83-acre dump site, along with high concentrations of phenol, toluene, ethyl bensense and xylene.
But Clawson said nearby residents need not worry about their safety.
“There has been testing done, and we did not find anything that concerned us,” Clawson said.
Once The Cox Road Group finishes its comprehensive testing of the site, it will submit an Affected Property Assessment Report to the TCEQ for evaluation. After the agency makes any necessary changes, the CRG will file a Response Action Plan detailing exactly what steps will be taken to clean-up the area.
To follow the progression of the Cox Road Group’s clean-up efforts, visit www.coxroadlandfill.com. To report related environmental concerns to the TCEQ, call (713) 767-3500.
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Baytown Sun Published July 1, 2006 Representatives from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) and the Cox Road Group met with concerned Liberty County residents on Thursday night to discuss clean up efforts at the Cox Road Dump Site.
According to a TCEQ Investigation released in 2003, the dump, which is located about a mile north of FM 1413 and south of Dayton, is about 83 acres of exposed industrial waste.
Since it was abandoned in about 1983, the topsoil has eroded away to reveal a brown, sticky substance.
“If you look at aerial photos of the site, most of it is totally devoid of vegetation. It’s so contaminated that nothing will really grow on it… It’s kind of like a moonscape,” Donald Maiersonm Attorney for about 350 nearby residents and property owners said.
Maierson is naming several entities who used the site, as well as the investment firm that sold many nearby homeowners their properties without disclosing its existence, in class action lawsuit under the negligence, nuisance and trespass law.
Several residents who live close to the site expressed concern that contaminants may have migrated to their properties during flooding events, polluting their soil and putting the health of them and their families at risk.
Billie Rowsey, who lives about one and three-fourths of a mile away from the dump site, says when the wind is just right, she has seen “huge, mushroom-shaped toxic cocktail clouds” form above it, and has documented these photos on her website, http://groups.msn.com/1413residents
“Cross winds go over the site and pick up chemicals,” Rowsey said. “You can see them falling to the ground.”
TCEQ Spokesperson Terry Clawson said Rowsey, or any other resident with similar concerns should report them the TCEQ for further investigation.
“We take all complaints very seriously, so if she really thinks that she saw that, she should call the Houston office, and if we think it is appropriate, we will send an investigator out.”
The Cox Group (CRG) has voluntarily offered to clean up the dump site under the direction of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
The Cox Group is comprised of the Exxon Mobil Corporation, The Lubrizol Corporation and the United States Steel Corporation, just three of as many as 55 companies who utilized the site to dispose of industrial waste while it was in operation from 1970 through 1983.
Ien Webster, An environmental engineer for CRG told a group of about 50 people in the Dayton High School Cafeteria that the clean up process should be completed by early 2008, though he did not specifically mention if or how the waste materials will be extracted and disposed of.
Webster said licensed engineers, geologists and other environmentalists will perform the work under the watchful eye of the Texas Risk Reduction Program (TRRP).
The CRG plans to begin preliminary clean-up efforts immediately. First, grass and brush will be trimmed to ensure accurate surveying and boundary marking, then 9 thousand feet of fence will be installed around the area and warning signs posted every 200 feet. Next, drilling and sampling of soil and groundwater will be conducted to determine the extent of contamination.
The results of these tests will be used to determine the risks associated with the site, and will serve as the basis for a remedial action plan, which will be submitted to the TCEQ.
Karl Christen, who lives just two and a half miles from the site, was pleased with the efforts CRG is making to rectify the landfill situation,
“The companies are voluntarily coming in and making an effort to clean it up. I think they are finally getting started to do something,” Christen said.
Despite that, he still has reservations about the safety of his water wells and said he sometimes smells contaminants.
A TCEQ investigation conducted in 2003 revealed high concentrations of lead and mercury sometimes more then 10 times higher then normal background levels throughout the 83-acre dump site, along with high concentrations of phenol, toluene, ethyl bensense and xylene.
But Clawson said nearby residents need not worry about their safety.
“There has been testing done, and we did not find anything that concerned us,” Clawson said.
Once The Cox Road Group finishes its comprehensive testing of the site, it will submit an Affected Property Assessment Report to the TCEQ for evaluation. After the agency makes any necessary changes, the CRG will file a Response Action Plan detailing exactly what steps will be taken to clean-up the area.
To follow the progression of the Cox Road Group’s clean-up efforts, visit www.coxroadlandfill.com. To report related environmental concerns to the TCEQ, call (713) 767-3500.
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