EPA Deems Superfund Sites in Louisiana Okay after Hurricanes

Two of five Superfund sites in Louisiana that were hit by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita have increased levels of contaminants in groundwater, according to EPA tests. This pollution has not tainted drinking water supplies near those two sites, the agency said, adding that contamination at the three other sites it investigated has not spread. EPA found some organic compounds, including naphthalene, in monitoring wells at Bayou Bonfouca, the site of the former American Creosote Works Plant in Slidell, La., but they were at concentrations below screening levels for tap water. Lead, arsenic, manganese, and nickel were detected at higher levels than recorded in May at monitoring wells near Delatte Metals, the site of a former lead-acid battery recycler in Ponchatoula, La. Meanwhile, soil sampling showed that contamination has not migrated from the former Agriculture Street landfill in New Orleans, which remained underwater for weeks, EPA said. Also, contamination did not spread from the Southern Shipbuilding site in Slidell, which had been polluted with polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons, the agency continued. Finally, contamination did not migrate from the Madisonville (La.) Creosote Works Superfund site, where tons of creosote had been removed.