2554 GETTY STREET
The Peerless Plating Co. site is a one-acre abandoned electroplating facility, located in Muskegon. Electroplating operations were carried out at the plant from 1937 to 1983. Toxic, corrosive, reactive, and flammable chemicals were used in the electroplating process. The plant discharged its wastewater into three unlined seepage lagoons at the back of the facility. The wastewater contained heavy metals and were highly acidic or basic. When the plant closed in 1983, it was abandoned; plating solutions, raw materials, and drummed waste remained throughout the facility. In 1983, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources discovered that drains inside one of the buildings did not connect with the site's sanitary sewer or wastewater treatment system; instead, the wastes drained directly onto the ground. The state also discovered drums onsite. In 1983, the Michigan Department of Public Health detected hydrocyanic acid gas in the facility's atmosphere. The owner's failure to take immediate action to remove the gas prompted the state to contact the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to assist in reducing the threat to public health caused by the gas. The surrounding area is mixed residential, commercial, and light industrial development. Approximately 3,350 people live within a three-mile radius of the site. Seven schools, a hospital, and a correctional facility are located within one mile. The nearest residence is located within 600 feet of the site. Approximately 1,500 people obtain drinking water from private wells, operating within a three-mile radius. The city uses the shallow aquifer as the only groundwater alternative to the municipal water supply which draws from Lake Michigan. Little Black Creek flows to the southeast and empties into Mona Lake, two miles downstream from the site. EPA has found site-related contaminants in Little Black Creek. However, other contaminant sources exist upstream and have appeared to contribute to this contamination of Little Black Creek. Site Responsibility This site was being addressed through federal actions. Site operations for the groundwater contamination were turned over to the State of Michigan in September 2013. Additional enhancement to the current treatment system is expected to be implemented in the Summer of 2015. This remedial enhancement will be a federal Lead.
8,313 |
People living within a 1 mile radius |
$42,209 |
Average Income |
3,153 |
Occupied homes |
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