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Sylvan Grove CCC/USDA Carbon Tet Site
The Sylvan Grove former CCC/USDA site is an industrial site located near 308 Old HWY 18, Sylvan Grove, Lincoln County, Kansas. The public land survey description is the southeast quarter of the southeast quarter of Section 11 Township 12 South, Range 10 West in Lincoln County, Kansas. The Site is surrounded by agricultural use property to the north and east, and residential properties to the south and west.
Site Background
The Commodity Credit Corporation/United States Department of Agriculture (CCC/USDA) operated a grain storage facility consisting of 30 circular grain storage bins on two acres from 1954 to 1966 and used carbon tetrachloride (CT) as a grain fumigant. After the grain storage facility closed, all structures were removed, and the land was incorporated into farm homesite property. KDHE detected CT contamination above the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) of 5 micrograms per liter (µg/L) in a private well in 1998 and 2006 during a statewide USDA private well sampling program.
Related Documents
Site Investigation
KDHE conducted subsurface soil sampling in 1998 to assess CT contamination in Sylvan Grove, during which a potential source was identified at the former USDA/CCC grain storage facility. Six subsurface soil samples were collected at depths ranging from 8.5 to 18.5 feet. Samples contained low levels of CT in soil, with a maximum concentration of 28 micrograms per kilogram (µg/kg). The KDHE Tier 2 Risk-based Standards for Kansas Levels (RSK) for the soil to groundwater pathway for CT is 73.4 µg/kg, while the RSK level for the residential scenario soil pathway is 8,440 µg/kg.
In 2012-2013, Argonne conducted an environmental site investigation on behalf of the CCC/USDA, which included indoor air and ambient air, groundwater, soil, and subsurface soil assessments. Groundwater was sampled from existing public drinking water, private, and monitoring wells, and 75 subsurface soil samples. These samples were analyzed for volatile organic compounds (VOCs) to determine whether a contaminant source area was present in the vadose zone and to characterize the groundwater-bearing zone.
In 2014-2017, CCC/USDA conducted additional monitoring and hydraulic testing work to further delineate the plume and source areas. The investigation included detailed logging and VOC analyses from 10 well locations.