| Abstract |
The Teledyne Wah Chang (TWC) site, in Millersburg, Oregon, is an active plant used to produce nonferrous metals and products. The site consists of a 110-acre plant site, which contains the plant's former sludge ponds, and a 115-acre farm site, which contains four active wastewater sludge ponds. Portions of the TWC site are within the Willamette River's 100- and 500-year floodplain. The Wah Chang Corporation began operating a U.S. Bureau of Mines zirconium metal sponge pilot plant under contract with the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission in 1956. Additional facilities were subsequently built near the plant beginning in 1957 to produce nonferrous metals and products. The Lower River Solids Pond (LRSP) and Schmidt Lake sludge pond, which stored wastewater generated from the plant operations, are being addressed by this remedial action. The sludge in both the LRSP and Schmidt Lake contains heavy metals, organic compounds, and trace levels of radionuclides. The selected remedial action for the site includes excavation of 85,000 cubic yards of sludge with partial solidification of the sludge, followed by offsite disposal in a permitted solid waste landfill. |
