Fun Pl and Railroad Crossing
Chapter 133 -
Open
Fun Pl and Railroad Crossing ,
Sioux City ,
IA
51108
Project Manager:
Jake
Bucklin
Summary
The site is a small area at the intersection of Fun Place and a Union Pacific Railroad crossing where a train collided with a tanker truck in September 2013, causing a release of 5,000-6,000 gallons of liquid Urea Ammonium Nitrate and 50-100 gallons of diesel. A soil and groundwater investigation was completed following initial response and cleanup actions to evaluate potential contamination resulting from the release. This investigation found that diesel appears to have been cleaned up adequately, but ammonia, nitrate, and nitrite were present in soil and groundwater at concentrations that present a potential hazard to human health and the environment. Remedial actions to date include the use of Oxygen Release Compound (ORC) socks to accelerate the reaction that breaks down ammonia to nitrate and Mass Removal Events (MREs) using a vacuum truck to extract groundwater from the two monitoring wells in the source area. Analytical results have indicated that these remedial actions have improved groundwater quality, and once ammonia levels are reduced enough, further remedial actions will be undertaken to accelerate the breakdown of nitrate and nitrite into non-hazardous nitrogen gas. Groundwater monitoring is ongoing to evaluate appropriate remedial actions, and evidence has shown that although contaminants are present at unacceptable levels the plume is not migrating and no hazards are presented to the public at this time.