New York Times articleCTS Corporation, of Elkhart, Indiana, purchases the Mills Gap Rd. facility from IRC in a joint manufacture agreement 2 in Electronics Pact: Resistance Co., Chicago Phone Supply Slate Mutual Aid.”
CTS registers as a generator of hazardous waste with EPA
PHASE II REMEDIAL INVESTIGATION WORK PLAN CTS of Asheville registers as a generator of hazardous waste with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), after listing that the company disposes of 44,440 pounds of sludge and 8,307 pounds of waste solvent annually.
CTS is denied permission to treat or dispose of hazardous waste by the North Carolina Division of Health Services.
CTS is denied permission to treat or dispose of hazardous waste by the North Carolina Division of Health Services.
Denial of Waste (PDF)
CTS Corporation ceases all operations at the facility.
Resident Dave Ogren calls NC Dept. Environment and Natural Resources to report a chemical pond; but this call first appears in a 1990 document from DENR.
On behalf of CTS, Law Environmental, Inc., assesses the site, reporting that “the potential for ground-water contaminants at the site appears to be minimal.”
Law EnvironmentalOn behalf of CTS, Law Environmental, Inc., assesses the site and claims that “the potential for ground-water contaminants at the site appears to be minimal.”
CTS sells its property (53.54 acres) to Mills Gap Road Associates under a land contract, which was settled with a final payment made Aug. 27, 1997.
Phase I Site AssessmentCTS sells its property (53.54 acres) to Mills Gap Road Associates (MGRA).
NC Department of Environment and Natural Resources logs a call regarding a “chemical pond” on the property, sparking state involvement.
North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources (NCDENR) documents a call from resident Dave Ogren, reporting a “chemical pond” on the property, sparking state involvement. Ogren argues this call was actually made in Spring, 1987.
Pat DeRosa at NCDENR PDF
NUS Corporation, under contract from the EPA, completes the second phase of the screening site inspection, listing many dangerous chemicals yet recommends “no further remedial action” be taken on the site.
NUS Corporation, under contract from the EPA, completes the second phase of the screening site inspection, listing many dangerous chemicals yet recommends “no further remedial action” be taken on the site.
Phase II Screening Site Inspection PDF
North Carolina Division of Waste Management places the site on its Inactive Hazardous Sites (IHS) inventory.
Inactive Hazardous Sites InventoryNorth Carolina Division of Waste Management (DWM) places the site on its Inactive Hazardous Sites (IHS) inventory.
NC Department of Waste Management refuses a request from new owner, Mills Gap Road Associates, to remove the site from the IHS inventory.
NCDENR orders MGRA to record inactive hazardous substances on their property.
CTS Letter 4NCDENR orders MGRA to record inactive hazardous substances on their property.
Law firm Powell & Deutsch prepares a plat of property for development by The Biltmore Group, though this plat fails to list main contaminants on the property.
Law firm Powell & Deutsch prepares a plat of property for development by The Biltmore Group, though this plat fails to list main contaminants on the property.
Plat PDFCTS - Powell 1 PDF
NC Division of Water Quality (DWQ) tests the drinking wells of the Rice family, neighbors of the CTS property, and finds trichloroethylene (TCE) at 21,000 ppb, 4,200 times the EPA’s legal limit of 5 ppb. The family is put on municipal water.
De Rosa letter, 1999NC Division of Water Quality (DWQ) tests the drinking wells of the Rice family, neighbors of the CTS property, and finds trichloroethylene (TCE) at 21,000 ppb, 4,200 times the EPA’s legal limit of 5 ppb. The family is put on municipal water (see attached letter from DENR’s Pat DeRosa).
EPA Region 4 conducts a removal site evaluation, concluding that the site poses a threat to public health and the environment; see 2002 EPA Action Memorandum.
CTS - EPA 1999
EPA Region 4 conducts a removal site evaluation, concluding that the site poses a threat to public health and the environment; see 2002 EPA Action Memorandum.
EPA contractor Tetra Tech releases report indicating soil and sediment samples containing high levels of chemicals including TCE, chromium, arsenic and mercury.
Tetra Tech reportEPA contractor Tetra Tech releases report indicating soil and sediment samples containing high levels of chemicals including TCE, chromium, arsenic and mercury.
EPA contractor Lockheed Martin identifies TCE in the soil beneath the plant at 830,000 ppb, prompting action from the EPA.
NCDWM recommends “No Further Remedial Action” status in their Expanded Site Inspection.
NCDWM recommends “No Further Remedial Action” status in their Expanded Site Inspection.
EPA Region 4 releases an Action Memorandum approving an immediate, full-scale cleanup of the site, claiming “an immediate threat to the health and safety of nearby residents.”
2002 Action MemorandumEPA Region 4 releases an Action Memorandum approving an immediate, full-scale cleanup of the site, claiming “an immediate threat to the health and safety of nearby residents.”
EPA Region 4 issues an Administrative Order on Consent for Removal Action (AOC) for the site, providing means by which a “removal action” can take place (Hitchcock). The AOC is an agreement between EPA, CTS and MGRA.
Administrative Order on Consent for Removal ActionEPA Region 4 issues an Administrative Order on Consent for Removal Action (AOC) for the site, providing means by which a “removal action” can take place (Hitchcock). The AOC is an agreement between EPA, CTS and MGRA.
NC Div. Waste Management submits Site Reassessment Report to EPA Region 4, recommending no further remedial action due to a “lack of contaminated groundwater being used for potable uses.”
NC Department of Health and Human Services reports that “private well data…do not indicate the potential for adverse health effects” and that there is no "cancer cluster" at the site.
EPA’s Office of Inspector General criticizes EPA Region 4’s handling of the site, claiming that contaminated drinking water went undetected and that “site risks remain”
CTS Corporation files a lawsuit against current property owner Mills Gap Road Associates for “breach of contract" regarding their agreement to share cleanup costs
Mills Gap residents files a lawsuit in federal court against CTS Corporation, alleging the company used an illegal dumping system and discharged TCE polluting the environment and sickening citizens
A UNCA study by led by Professor Jeffrey Wilcox notes TCE in tissues of trees near the CTS plant and finds 1,340 ppb in a stream near the site, “[indicating] a consistent source of TCE feeding the streams”
Community leaders appeal to the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners to condemn the CTS building, claiming a compromised structure and evidence of gang- and drug-related activity inside the abandoned plant
