Federal and state officials will discuss the upcoming cleanup of an area of the Navassa Superfund site during a community meeting Thursday night.
Work that is set to begin soon on removing contaminated soil within about a 16-acre area known as operable unit 2, or OU2, and hiring and training opportunities for residents and businesses will be among the topics to be discussed at the meeting.
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Officials will also share information about the upcoming sale of about 87 acres of the property owned by the Multistate Trust, which, along with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality, is hosting the meeting.
OU2 is part of a former wood-treatment site where, after closing operations in the mid-1970s, left a legacy of contamination of creosote on the land. Creosote is a gummy, tar-like substance used to treat wood utilized for railroad ties and utility poles.
The land was added to the EPA’s National Priorities List of federal Superfund sites in 2010.
Treated and untreated wood was stored in areas of OU2. Nearly 3,000 cubic yards of soils contaminated with creosote in that unit will be dug up, removed from the site and temporarily stored within another unit of the site.
The work is expected to take three to four months to complete and, when finished, the land will be available for unrestricted use.
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Stockpiled soils will either be reused or consolidated into the cleanup of OU4, according to a release.
The meeting will be held 6-7 p.m. in person and virtually. An in-person, drop-in session will be held immediately following the meeting at the Navassa Community Center, 338 Main St.
To join online use this Zoom link or enter tinyurl.com/NavassaMeetings. To join by phone call 301-715-8592. Use meeting ID 946 584 8922 and passcode 664564.
For additional information visit the Multistate Trust website, the EPA website or DEQ.
