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Record of Decision System (RODS)
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE
Abstract
| Site Name: | TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE |
| Address: | TRAVIS AFB |
| City & State: | TRAVIS AFB CA 94535 |
| County: | SOLANO |
| EPA ID: | CA5570024575 |
| EPA Region: | 09 |
| NPL Status: | Currently on the Final NPL |
| ROD Type: | Record of Decision |
| ROD ID: | EPA/541/R-98/029 |
| ROD Date: | 12/03/1997 |
| Operable Unit(s): | 01 |
| Media: | Groundwater |
| Contaminant: | Base Neutral Acids, Dioxins/Dibenzofurans, Metals, PAH, PCBs, Petroleum Hydrocarbon, VOC |
| Abstract: |
Please note that the text in this document summarizes the Record of Decision for the purposes of facilitating searching and retrieving key text on the ROD. It is not the officially approved abstract drafted by the EPA Regional offices. Once EPA Headquarters receives the official abstract, this text will be replaced. Travis Air Force Base (AFB), located between Sacramento and San Francisco, California, was established in 1943. The base was used from 1948 to 1958 as a base for the Strategic Air Command (SAC). SAC relinquished control of the base to Military Air Transport Services (MATS) in 1958, which established the headquarters for the Western Transport Air Force at Travis AFB. MATS evolved into the Military Airlift Command (MAC) in the early 1960s. MAC was renamed the Air Mobility Command in June 1992. Travis AFB is part of the Air Mobility Command and is home to the 60th Air Mobility Wing. The Air Mobility Wing operates C-5 and C-141 aircraft and KC-10 aerial refueling aircraft and is the largest mobility organization in the Air Force, incorporating both MAC and SAC units. An Interim Record of Decision (IROD) was issued in December 1997 that addressed groundwater contamination within the NEWIOU. Travis AFB occupies approximately 5,025 acres of land near the center of Solano County, California. It consists of five types of land uses. They are industrial support areas, air field or direct mission areas, administrative and medical service areas, housing, recreation, and service areas, and open space areas. The lands surrounding Travis AFB are primarily used for ranching and grazing, with some light industrial activity present to the northwest. Approximately 3,700 military personnel and 4,400 family members live on Travis AFB. In addition, 3,172 civilians are employed at the base. Approximately 17,000 people are on Travis AFB daily. Large volume pumping of groundwater generally occurs only to the west of Travis AFB and in Fairfield where the alluvium is thicker and contains a greater abundance of coarse-grained sediment. Groundwater wells in the area of Travis AFB are limited to domestic, stock-watering, and irrigation wells. Domestic wells, several of which are downgradient from Travis AFB, are typically used for households and gardens. Groundwater contamination does not affect domestic wells. The residences surrounding Travis AFB use groundwater for their domestic water supply because there is no existing county water supply. No on-base wells are currently used for potable water production. However, several wells located 4 miles north of Travis AFB, at the golf course annex, produce 400 to 500 million gallons of water per year. This well water is mixed with surface water purchased from the city of Vallejo to supply potable water to Travis AFB. The Fairfield public water supply field is located approximately 3 miles west of Travis AFB. Groundwater contamination from Travis AFB does not affect Fairfield's water supply. Surface water at Travis AFB drains into several storm sewer systems (or storm drains), a network of underground pipes, culverts, and open drainage ditches, which directs surface water runoff and rainfall to Union Creek. There are four operable units (OUs) at Travis AFB. The North OU (NOU), the East Industrial OU (EIOU), and West Industrial OU (WIOU) comprise the North, East, West Industrial OU (NEWIOU). |
| Remedy: |
The selected remedy involves an interim remedial action, or combination of interim actions, appropriate to each site. Extraction, treatment, and discharge, will be used at specified sites to reduce concentrations of groundwater contaminants and to remove floating petroleum product. The goal is to attempt to achieve interim remediation goals (IRGs), but the Air Force will, at minimum, continue the action as necessary to prevent migration of the plume and will evaluate the level of cleanup that is economically and technically achievable. This alternative (also referred to as "pump and treat") cleans or controls the contaminated plume by extracting contaminated groundwater. The Air Force will treat and discharge extracted groundwater. Extraction processes could include both horizontal and vertical extraction wells; Travis Air Force Base (AFB) presently uses both types of wells at the base. Vertical wells with skimmer pumps could also be used for floating product recovery. Bioslurping, two-phase, dual phase or soil vapor extraction systems to remove soil gas, free product and/or groundwater may also be used. One or more of the following treatment technologies will be implemented for treatment: Air Stripping, Thermal and Catalytic Oxidation, Activated Carbon, Ion Exchange, Ultraviolet Radiation and Oxidation, Treatment Technology Selection. This remedy is the selected interim remedial action for sites where at least one of the following cases exists: dissolved volatile organic compound (VOC) contamination extends off-base; floating petroleum product or secondary sources of VOC contamination (dense non-aqueous phase liquids [DNAPLs]) exist; or migration of contaminated groundwater is confirmed. For sites where none of the above criteria apply, the Air Force considered natural attenuation/monitoring, as a possible interim action. Although conditions at these sites indicate the potential for natural attenuation, confirmation that the process is taking place requires additional data and evaluation. Therefore, the interim remedial decision for these sites is: 1. select Natural Attenuation as the interim remedial alternative for one representative site (LF006) to initiate a site-specific natural attenuation evaluation because of evidence indicating that natural attenuation is occurring; 2. defer the selection of an alternative for the remaining sites, or portions of sites, until the Air Force obtains and evaluates additional data; and 3. initiate a basewide natural attenuation assessment plan to obtain the data for a natural attenuation evaluation for the remaining sites, or portions of sites. The evaluation at LF006 will develop Travis AFB's approach for this basewide assessment plan. The Remedial Action/Remedial Design (RD/RA) Work Plan for LF006 will address placement of monitoring wells, protocols for monitoring, and evaluation procedures for determining if the contaminated plume is stable (no significant migration above water quality objectives). Information obtained during the five-year interim period will be used to determine whether natural attenuation and/or containment is the most technologically and economically feasible final remedy. The Air Force will not allow horizontal or vertical migration of contaminants along preferential pathways or within the aquifer at the natural attenuation sites during the five-year period. The Air Force will use institutional actions for all groundwater sites within the North, East, West Industrial Operable Unit (NEWIOU). The Air Force will place administrative controls on the use of on-base groundwater from contaminated areas. The Air Force will place administrative controls also on areas with groundwater contamination, restricting excavation and subsurface work where the excavation worker will encounter groundwater or vapors emitted from the groundwater. The Air Force will implement alternative supplies if monitoring identifies a threat to off-base watersupply wells. A contingency plan for alternative water supplies will be incorporated into the RD/RA for sites with off-base plumes as a separate document. Groundwater monitoring of all NEWIOU groundwater sites will continue during all interim remedial actions to document the effect of the interim actions. The sites involving the extraction, treatment and discharge alternative are FT004, FT005, LF007 (Landfill 2, Area C off-base portion), SS016, SS029, SS030, SD031, ST032 (Plume B), SD033, SD034, and SD037 (Facility 83/838 and Ragsdale/V Areas). Action is deffered for the remainder of site SD037 as well as sites LF007 (Landfill 2, Area B), LF007 (Landfill 2, Area C on-base portion), LF007 (Landfill 2, Area D), ST032 (Plume A), and SD033 (South Gate, Facility 810 Plume). The natural attenuation/monitoring alternative is selected for site LF006, and either alternative will be selected for site SD036 based on the completed Natural Attenuation Study. Estimated Capital Cost: $16,053,000 Estimated First Year O&M Cost: $2,655,000 Estimated Present Worth Costs: Not Documented Estimated Total: $18,090,000 |
| Text: |
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