The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has set its sights on cleaning up a section of Phoenix's groundwater, tainted from past industrial actions, with a proposed plan that is now open for public scrutiny.
At a community meeting scheduled for November 13 at the Burton Barr Central Library, residents can hear about the EPA's strategy to address the polluted waters of Operable Unit 3, a section that spans from McDowell Road to Buckeye Road, and from 7th Avenue to 20th Street, this unit being the westernmost part of a Superfund Site known for its contamination stretching over seven miles, according to a report by ABC15.
“This is a big step forward to protect groundwater and ensure a future supply of safe drinking water for the Phoenix community,” Michael Montgomery, the region’s superfund and emergency management division director, told AZFamily. The contaminants' sources range from air conditioning equipment and semiconductor manufacturing to aerospace designs and dry cleaning operations.
Environmentalists have voiced that industrial and commercial activities are the predominant causes behind the contamination, which compromised the area's water quality, the EPA explained that the treatment, estimated at a cost of $14 million over approximately nine years, will involve a SITU injection directly into the ground, aiming to rehabilitate the groundwater to a point where it can once again be potable, with planning influenced by both current and anticipated future land use within the contaminated section, including the potential for the groundwater's future role as a drinking-water source.
Public input is considered crucial to the finalization of this cleanup plan, with the comment period open until December 15, prior to this period, the EPA encourages residents to participate in the meeting where further details including a poster session starting at 5 p.m. and a commenting window from 5:30 - 7:30 p.m., will form the core activities of the information sharing and feedback gathering process; more details on the Superfund Site and the proposed plan can be obtained from the EPA's fact sheet available on their website.
