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ECONOMIC, LEGAL, AND PRACTICAL PROBLEMS IN HAZARDOUS WASTE 170 CLEANUP AND MANAGEMENT original typesetting files. Page breaks are true to the original; line lengths, word breaks, heading styles, and other typesetting-specific formatting, however, cannot be About this PDF file: This new digital representation of the original work has been recomposed from XML files created from the original paper book, not from the retained, and some typographic errors may have been accidentally inserted. Please use the print version of this publication as the authoritative version for attribution. after two or three years of treatment. We maintain, however, that the treated water coming out of the aquifer should not be wasted. The cost of cleanup will reach the tens of millions of dollars. Harris already has spent $3 million and estimates it will take a minimum of five to seven years to effectively clean up contaminated portions of the aquifer. Sapp Battery Salvage Another illustration of the ''How clean is clean?'' dilemma concerns a site with contaminated groundwater that needed to be cleaned up to prevent poisoning of adjacent private wells. At this site, in Florida's Panhandle, different criteria were used to decide the degree of cleanup. Sapp Battery Salvage, which closed in January 1980, was engaged in recovering lead from spent storage batteries. Wastewater containing lead, zinc, magnesium, and sulfuric acid was discharged into an onsite swamp, which drains into the watershed of the most environmentally pristine bay in the state (see Figure 1). Dead and discolored vegetation, as well as strong sulfurous odors, were noted along the drainage route from the site. Significant levels of metals were found in sediments several miles downstream from the site. Figure 1 A cypress swamp was destroyed at the Sapp Battery hazardous waste site in Florida's Panhandle. In the foreground, piles of battery casingsâ some four to six feet deepâcover the site.
ECONOMIC, LEGAL, AND PRACTICAL PROBLEMS IN HAZARDOUS WASTE 171 CLEANUP AND MANAGEMENT original typesetting files. Page breaks are true to the original; line lengths, word breaks, heading styles, and other typesetting-specific formatting, however, cannot be About this PDF file: This new digital representation of the original work has been recomposed from XML files created from the original paper book, not from the retained, and some typographic errors may have been accidentally inserted. Please use the print version of this publication as the authoritative version for attribution. The site was placed on the federal Superfund list, and the Department of Environmental Regulation conducted a $235,000 remedial feasibility study as part of the Superfund process. The remedial investigation revealed areas where the soils contained lead levels as high as 140,000 milligrams per kilogram, or 14 percent lead. An unlined acid pond with a pH of 2 and lead levels at 4 milligrams per literâdrinking water standards are 0.05 milligrams per literâ was a source of contamination for groundwater and surface water. These findings and the recommendations from a study funded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) prompted the state to begin cleanup of these sources. So far we have removed and properly disposed of approximately 9,200 cubic yards of highly contaminated soil and sludge and have treated 125,000 gallons of contaminated water from the acid pond (see Figure 2). Our goal was to reduce the risk of direct contact with contaminants and to minimize the potential for further groundwater contamination. Our initial target was to remove enough soil to achieve lead levels of between 500 and 1,000 milligrams per kilogram. However, intense grid sampling revealed that contamination was more widespread than expected, with extremely high lead levels in certain spots. Consequently, we elected to remove only the "hot spots" with the funds allocated for this initial measure. We believe Figure 2 Lead-contaminated soil is removed at the Sapp Battery hazardous waste site in Florida's Panhandle.
