OLATHE, Kan. — KSHB 41 reporter Isabella Ledonne reports on stories in Overland Park, Johnson County and topics about government accountability. Share your story idea with Isabella.
—
For decades, companies sent their rejected chemicals to a site in Olathe to be recycled, repurposed and sold to someone else.
But the broker, Chemical Commodities, Inc., didn't properly handle those chemicals.
It led to spills, leaks and contamination in the soil beneath the site.
Now, the EPA is looking to hold a dozen companies involved responsible for contributing to decades worth of contamination that hasn't gone away.
KSHB 41 News reporters Elyse Schoenig and Isabella Ledonne first reported on the chemical contamination earlier in October.
"The main chemical that we're concerned about is trichloroethylene (TCE)," EPA's Region 7 Administrator Jim Macy said.
TCE is often used as a solvent to degrease metal. It's still present in the groundwater under Pollinator Prairie.
"It doesn't stay in the groundwater very long," Macy said. "It'll find a path to air and exposure."
A recent remedy review of the chemical clean up found that TCE could be spreading into homes farther west.
"That exposure over time leads to health effects that aren't good," Macy said. "They won't know unless we come in and test."
The EPA took over the State of Kansas' investigation of Chemical Commodities, Inc. in the 1990s. They started removing chemical barrels and eventually the chemical warehouse.
In 2011, the groundwater cleanup started with the goal of lowering chemical levels over the next 100 years. But that goal has not been reached.
The most recent review found the clean up efforts lacked protection of human health and the environment.
"We don't think it's effective," Macy said. "Because as we look at data, the area is expanding and the numbers are not decreasing."
The responsibility is now on those who first contaminated the soil.
Chemical Commodities, Inc. declared bankruptcy years ago. The EPA is now holding the following companies responsible who sent chemicals to the Olathe plant:
- Ashland Inc.
- Boeing Co.
- CertainTeed Corp.
- Alliant Techsystems, Inc., as successor to Cordant Technologies, Inc. and as successor to Hercules, Inc.
- Hallmark Cards Inc.
- Lucent Technologies Inc., as successor to Western Electric Co. and AT&T Technologies, Inc.
- Honeywell Federal Manufacturing & Technologies, LLC
- Mallinckrodt Inc.
- BNSF Railway
- Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service
- U.S. Department of Energy
- U.S. Air Force
"They're responsible for the cleanup," Macy said. "They'll be responsible for a new plan, a new record of decision and a new public participation process."
Macy explained that accountability involves companies paying for the cleanup and the EPA's oversight of the efforts.
"There's no taxpayer dollars, no resident dollars are being asked to contribute to the remediation of this site," Macy said. "It's all the responsible parties that caused this problem."
The EPA is currently seeking to test more homes in the area to possibly install vapor air mitigation systems.
If neighbors in the community have questions about whether their address is within the contaminated groundwater plume, they can contact Remedial Project Manager Stephanie Pfannenstiel at pfannenstiel.stephanie@epa.gov or 913-551-7242 or Community Involvement Coordinator Shaylee Borcsani at borcsani.shaylee@epa.gov.
KSHB 41 News reached out to some of the listed companies after hours. We did not receive a response.
—
