montana pole and treating

202 W GREENWOOD AVENUE

The Montana Pole and Treating Plant (MPTP), located in Butte, Montana, operated as a wood treating facility from 1946 to 1984. During most of this period, a solution of about 5 percent pentachlorophenol (PCP) mixed with petroleum carrier oil similar to diesel was used to preserve poles, posts, and bridge timbers. The PCP solution was applied to wood products in butt vats and pressure cylinders (retorts). Creosote was used as a wood preservative for a brief period in 1969. Hazardous substances from the pole-treating operations were discharged into a ditch next to the plant. The substances then began to run towards Silver Bow Creek. In March 1983, a citizen filed a complaint concerning oil seeping into Silver Bow Creek near the site. The Montana Department of Health and Environmental Services (MDHES), now the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), investigated the complaint and discovered an oil seep on the south side of Silver Bow Creek in the same direction the water flows, directly below the site. Further investigation of the site revealed oil-saturated soils adjacent to the creek and on MPTP property. Subsequent sampling confirmed the presence of PCP, polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and dioxins/furans in site soils and oil samples. Much of the land in the vicinity of the site has been used industrially, usually associated with past and present mining activities, though commercial and residential areas are immediately adjacent to the site. Two neighborhoods are within a quarter mile of the site. Groundwater use in the area is limited.

• Ritari Post & Pole (Sebeka, MN)
• Koppers Co., Inc. (oroville Plant) (Oroville, CA)
• Koppers Co., Inc. (morrisville Plant) (Morrisville, NC)
• Interstate Lead Co. (ilco) (Leeds, AL)
• Ely Copper Mine (Vershire, VT)

• Jasco Chemical Corp. (Mountain View, CA)
• St. Regis Paper Co. (Cass Lake, MN)
• Wyckoff Co./eagle Harbor (Bainbridge Island, WA)
• American Crossarm & Conduit Co. (Chehalis, WA)