About the Kerr-McGee Chemical Corp–Navassa Superfund Site

The Kerr-McGee Chemical Corp–Navassa Superfund Site (the Superfund site) was contaminated by nearly 40 years of creosote-based wood treating operations.

In 2010, the contamination in groundwater, soils, and sediments led the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to add the Superfund site to the National Priorities List (NPL) of federal Superfund sites. The NPL is the EPA list of the worst hazardous waste sites.

The Superfund designation means the remediation must follow the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) process that EPA uses to clean up Superfund sites. CERCLA is also known as Superfund.

The Multistate Environmental Response Trust (the Multistate Trust) is performing investigations and remediation of the Superfund site in Navassa — an Environmental Justice community — under EPA oversight and in consultation with the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ).

Milestones Achieved to Date

In 2011, the Multistate Trust accepted responsibility for owning and managing the Superfund site in Navassa as part of the Tronox bankruptcy settlement.

Since assuming responsibility for the site, the Multistate Trust has completed numerous environmental investigations and actions at the site, including the following:

• Remedial Investigation (RI) and final report, August 2019

• Human Health Risk Assessment (HHRA), April 2019

• Human Health Risk Assessment (HHRA) Addendum, August 2019

• Baseline Ecological Risk Assessment (BERA), February 2019

• Redevelopment Planning Initiative, 2017–2018

• Acquisition of two residential properties to facilitate Site remediation, 2016

In addition, EPA – with the support of the Multistate Trust and in consultation with NCDEQ – has implemented the following:

• Issuance of the Record of Decision (ROD) for Operable Unit 2, September 2022

• Completion of the Proposed Plan for Operable Unit 2, May 2022

• Issuance of the Record of Decision (ROD) for Operable Unit 1, April 2021

• Completion of the Proposed Plan for Operable Unit 1, January 2021

Find all administrative records published by EPA for the site at EPA Administrative Records. Visit the EPA website for Navassa at https://www.epa.gov/superfund/kerr-mcgee-chemical-corp.

What is an Operable Unit?

During remediation, a Superfund site can be divided into a number of distinct areas, depending on the complexity of the problems associated with the site, according to the EPA Superfund glossary. These areas are called operable units (OUs). Dividing a site into OUs may address geographic areas of a site, specific site problems, or areas where specific actions are required.

Operable Unit 1

Operable Unit 1 (OU1) is located in the northern portion of the Superfund Site. OU1 consists of 20.2 acres that EPA concluded pose no current or potential threat to human health or the environment under the current and reasonably anticipated future land uses (residential, commercial, industrial, or recreational).

In 2021, EPA deleted OU1 from the National Priorities List after issuing a Record of Decision determining no action is necessary in OU1 for unrestricted land use.

OU1 is located next to the 82-acre Eastern Upland Area, which means that a total of approximately 100 contiguous acres is available for reuse.

Operable Unit 2

The Multistate Trust, together with EPA and NCDEQ, are currently working on environmental actions at Operable Unit 2 (OU2). Located immediately south of OU1, OU2 consists of approximately 15.6 acres of the former treated and untreated wood storage areas that require removal of contaminated surface soil. EPA issued a Record of Decision for OU2 remediation in September 2022. Remedial work began March 2024 and will allow OU2 to support unrestricted land use.  

Investigations are underway at the other operable units at the Superfund Site.

Current Activities and Work

EPA signed the Record of Decision (ROD) for Operable Unit 2 (OU2) in September 2022. The selected remedy includes the excavation of soil with on-Site reuse/consolidation and off-Site disposal. In March 2024, the Multistate Trust began excavation work at OU2. See the Operable Unit 2 Remedial Action Fact Sheet and the OU2 Transportation and Disposal Plan Fact Sheet for more information.

The Multistate Trust has also been collecting data from the Marsh (OU3) to understand if contamination poses a risk to plants and animals. The data will help support future remediation decisions about the Marsh.

Our Beneficiaries and Regulatory Agencies

In Navassa, the Multistate Trust is working in collaboration with its federal and state governmental beneficiaries for the Site:

• the United States, which is represented by EPA and the U.S Department of Justice;

• the State of North Carolina, which is represented by NCDEQ; and

• the Navassa Trustee Council.

EPA is also the lead regulatory agency for the Site, and NCDEQ is the non-lead agency.

In EPA’s role as lead agency, EPA approves site-specific remediation plans and activities and the hiring of contractors to perform environmental activities at the Superfund site. In its role as beneficiary, EPA approves the Multistate Trust’s work plans and annual environmental budgets, in consultation with NCDEQ.

The sale, transfer, or disposition of any portion of the 154-acre Multistate Trust Property — which includes most of the Superfund site — must be approved by EPA and the Navassa Trustee Council.

The Navassa Trustee Council consists of representatives of:

• NCDEQ;

• the U.S. Department of the Interior, which is represented by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS); and

• the U.S. Department of Commerce, which is represented by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

Our Commitment to Community Stakeholders

The Multistate Trust and its beneficiaries recognize that the Town of Navassa and residents near the Superfund site have been impacted by the site.

The Multistate Trust team remains dedicated to protecting and engaging our neighbors and the surrounding community as we remediate the Site and plan for its safe, beneficial reuse for future generations.

Learn more at Community Involvement.