Kerr-McGee Superfund Site in Navassa Partially Deleted from Superfund National Priorities List

September 20, 2021 | Excerpt from U.S. EPA press release | Read entire press release here.

NAVASSA, N.C. (Sept. 20, 2021) – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently announced a partial deletion of the Kerr-McGee Chemical Corp – Navassa Superfund site from Superfund’s National Priorities List (NPL), benefitting the environment, the community of Navassa, and the people of North Carolina.

Nationally, EPA's announcement finalizes the deletion of 9 sites and the partial deletion of 11 sites from Superfund's National Priorities List. With this action, EPA has deleted all or part of 25 sites from the NPL in fiscal year 2021, signaling to communities that cleanup of the contamination is complete and allowing them to move forward in reusing and redeveloping the land.

The partial deletion at the Kerr-McGee site is for Operable Unit 1 (OU1). The deletion of OU1 marks the completion of the CERCLA process for 20.2 acres of the 100-acre Superfund site. The partial deletion of about one-fifth of the site supports EPA's strategy to prioritize making the site available for redevelopment. NPL site deletions help communities move forward in reusing and redeveloping the land by making it clear that cleanups are complete.

“This partial deletion represents a significant milestone that EPA and our partners are making to clean up contaminated property and return the land to productive use,” said EPA Acting Region 4 Administrator John Blevins. "A successful cleanup improves human health and the environment while also supporting economic growth."

The Kerr-McGee Chemical Corp – Navassa Superfund site is located in Navassa, North Carolina. The site is a former wood-treating plant that operated from 1936 to 1980. Wood treating operations generated wastewater that was disposed in ponds on site and wastewater that discharged into the marsh on the south end of the facility. EPA placed the site on the Superfund program’s NPL in 2010 because of contaminated groundwater, soil and sediment caused by facility operations.