Stockpiles of electronic waste, hazardous waste, abandoned containers and lead-contaminated soil were successfully removed from the site of former recycling business in the town of Oconto Falls.
“It’s 100 percent better than what it was,” said Pat Virtues, head of the county’s planning, zoning and solid waste department.
The property of Arthur and Ruth Ann Giese, 6509 County Road K, was designated as an Environmental Protection Agency Superfund site; cleanup began July 27 and ended Aug. 11.
The Gieses were placed in the care of a guardian in 2014 and now reside at an assisted living home.
“Everything went fairly smoothly,” Virtues told the County Board on Thursday.”They were able to get the materials out that they were obligated to (remove).”
Debris piles dotted the 1-acre parcel, lying directly on the soil of the area surrounded by wetlands. Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources tests at the site indicated lead levels in the processed electronic piles greater than 40 times the hazardous waste level.
In July, the county committed to paying up to $6,500 to fund the cleanup effort, though the actual cost was $3,033. The county will either be reimbursed by the Gieses’ guardianship for the $3,033, or the expense will be placed as a lien on the property.
The county spent $1,080 to dispose of the nonhazardous waste at the MAROCO Landfill, plus $500 for tire recycling and $1,450 for TV and computer monitoring recycling. The EPA costs were estimated at $122,000, though costs could escalate if additional remediation of soil contamination is necessary and the well is permanently abandoned. The well was temporarily abandoned during the cleanup process.
The EPA set a removal allowance of $272,952 for the work done by Environmental Quality Management, with an additional $50,000 for Tetra Tech, of Green Bay, for technical support.
Crews at the site had the tedious job of hand-sorting and segregating the waste and preparing it for transport. The lead-contaminated soil was removed, air quality was monitored, and the waste was hauled away.
Kathy Halbur, the EPA’s on-scene coordinator, said there were no surprises during the cleanup process — well, maybe one surprise: “I never got used to the snakes,” she said.
She called the project a great partnership with the county.
“We had a good meeting at the wrap-up. Everybody was able to come out — the guardian, the town, the county, the DNR— so it was a really good partnership with everybody that was involved on how to get that waste taken care of properly,” she said.
The guardian for the Gieses plans to sell the property, Virtues said.
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