News Release
11/06/96

Thermo-Chem, Inc. Toxic Waste Site Evaluated

People should stay off the former Thomas Solvent and Thermo-Chem, Inc., properties east of Muskegon, at least until the health hazards posed by the site can be more fully evaluated, according to a Public Health Assessment released today by the Michigan Department of Community Health (MDCH).

The Thomas Solvent and Thermo-Chem properties together make up the Thermo-Chem, Inc. site, which has been placed on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) Superfund National Priorities List. This assessment is a revision of the draft Public Health Assessment for the site that MDCH released for public comment on January 31, 1996.

The Thermo-Chem, Inc. site is a former industrial waste hauling and reprocessing facility that operated from 1961 to 1986. Due to past leaks, spills, and waste disposal practices, the soil and groundwater on the site are contaminated with various organic chemicals. Contractors for the Potentially Responsible Parties associated with the site, under supervision by the U.S. EPA and Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ), have built a new fence around the site and decontaminated and demolished structures on the site. Future remedial actions planned for the site include excavation of contaminated soil, off-site disposal of debris and soil, and pumping and treatment of contaminated groundwater.

There is not sufficient information available on the concentrations of contaminants in the surface soil on the site to evaluate the health threat from contact with the soil. The contaminated groundwater is presumed to discharge to Black Creek, south of the site.

The Public Health Assessment recommends further study of the site and of Black Creek to determine the extent of environmental contamination and the hazard to public health. Such studies are currently under way. Another recommendation calls for access to the site to be better restricted. This has recently been resolved through fencing of the entire property and the posting of warning signs.

MDCH welcomes further public comment on the Public Health Assessment and will accept new information regarding the site for inclusion in future assessments of the site. Copies of the Public Health Assessment are available at the Egelston Township Public Library and the Muskegon County Health Department offices for review. Information and comments should be addressed to the Michigan Department of Community Health, Division of Health Risk Assessment, 3423 North Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., P.O. Box 30195, Lansing, Michigan 48909. People may also call the toll-free telephone number, 1-800-MI-TOXIC.

The Public Health Assessment for the Thermo-Chem, Inc. site was conducted by MDCH under a cooperative agreement with the federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) in Atlanta, Georgia.

For more information, call John L. Hesse or Brendan Boyle at the MDCH Division of Health Risk Assessment, (517) 335-8350 or at the toll-free number above.