Former Kerr-McGee Site in Columbus
The former Kerr-McGee Site was contaminated by decades of wood treating operations. The Site was added to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s National Priorities List of federal Superfund sites in 2011. The National Priorities List (NPL) is a listing of the worst hazardous waste sites identified by Superfund.
The Site’s Superfund designation means the cleanup must follow the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) process that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) uses to clean up Superfund sites. Read about CERCLA, also known as Superfund.
The Multistate Trust is performing investigations and cleanup under EPA oversight and in consultation with the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ).
Overview of Cleanup Work
Operable Units and Milestones at the Columbus Site
A Superfund site is often divided into sections, called Operable Units or OUs, based on their investigation and cleanup needs.
Operable Unit 1 (OU1): Pine Yard
Operable Unit 2 (OU2): Surface Soil in Off-Site (Residential and Commercial) Properties
Substantial completion of cleanup and restoration of off-site property surface soils, 2021
Operable Unit 3 (OU3): Former Main Plant Area – Southern Portion
EPA Record of Decision, September 2024
Operable Unit 4 (OU4): Pine Yard Deep Zone and Access Road
Operable Unit 5 (OU5): Former Main Plant Area – Northern Portion
Operable Unit 6 (OU6): Groundwater
Operable Unit 7 (OU7): Wetlands in Northeast Portion of Pine Yard
Stormwater Ditch Work
Since assuming responsibility for the former Kerr-McGee Site in 2011, the Multistate Trust has worked with EPA, MDEQ, and the City of Columbus on:
Issuance of EPA Time-Critical Removal Action Memorandum for cleanup of City of Columbus stormwater ditch between Moss Street and Waterworks Road, December 2019
Removal of creosote and restoration of City of Columbus stormwater ditch along 7th Avenue North from Waterworks Road to Probst Park, 2017. Read our announcement.
Recent and Current Activities
CLEANUP OF OFF-SITE PROPERTY SURFACE SOILS
The Multistate Trust completed excavating and removing contaminated soil from, and restoring yard surface vegetation on, the last two residential properties near the Site as part of the OU2 remediation. Air monitoring, truck decontamination, and traffic control efforts were taken to keep the community safe during construction. Read more here and here.
PHYTOREMEDIATION
A variety of trees were planted at the Site in 2021 as part of the Phytoremediation Pilot Study by EPA and the U.S. Geological Survey to evaluate if tree groves can be used in combination with other cleanup actions to control groundwater movement and help maintain protective conditions. In 2024, phytoremediation was selected as a component of the Operable Unit 3 remedy. Learn more here.
Operable Unit 1 Cleanup Complete
Contaminated surface and near-surface soil and creosote (OU1) have been removed from the 44-acre Pine Yard. In 2024, the Multistate Trust completed regrading and seeding most of the Pine Yard. An area in the southern part of the Pine Yard is now ready for reuse. Read our fact sheet about Pine Yard Soil Removal.
Upcoming Work
Pine Yard/OU4: Future work will be done to address the area of deeper creosote contamination in and immediately adjacent to the Pine Yard (OU4). The Feasibility Study for OU4 is estimated to get underway in 2025.
Former Main Plant Area: In 2024, EPA released the Record of Decision for the cleanup plan for Operable Unit 3, the southern part of the Former Main Plant Area. The remedy design is expected to begin in 2025. A proposed cleanup plan and Record of Decision for the rest of the Former Main Plant Area (Operable Unit 5) are expected to be released in 2025.
Sampling Activities at 27th Street Ditch: To support the City of Columbus stormwater ditch cleanout activities to improve drainage, the Multistate Trust will continue sampling in and around the 27th Street North ditch that drains stormwater between the Pine Yard and residential properties to the east.
Environmental Documents
Site’s Community Resource Building at 2300 14th Avenue North in Columbus, MS.
The public can access Site documents at:
Our Documents & Resources page
EPA’s website for the Kerr-McGee Chemical Corp — Superfund Site in Columbus
The Site’s Community Resource Building at 2300 14th Avenue North, Columbus. Hours of operation are Tuesdays 8 a.m. – 10 a.m., and Thursdays 12 noon – 2 p.m.
the document repository at the Columbus-Lowndes Public Library, 314 7th Street North, in the Historical Room, Columbus; and
Our Beneficiaries and regulatory agencies
The beneficiaries of the Multistate Trust are the federal government and the state government where each site is located. In Columbus, the beneficiaries are represented by EPA and MDEQ.
EPA held a public meeting Dec. 13, 2018, in Columbus to discuss the Proposed Plan for cleanup of the Pine Yard area.
EPA is also the lead regulatory agency for the Site, and MDEQ is the non-lead agency. As lead agency, EPA approves site-specific cleanup plans and activities and the hiring of contractors at the Site.
In its role as beneficiary and in consultation with MDEQ, EPA approves the Multistate Trust’s annual environmental budgets. EPA and MDEQ will also make final decisions about the sale, transfer, or disposition of all or any portion of the Site.
Our Commitment to Community Stakeholders
The Multistate Trust and its beneficiaries recognize that the City of Columbus, and particularly the residents near the former Kerr-McGee Site, have been and continue to be most affected by the Site, its cleanup, and revitalization.
The Multistate Trust team remains dedicated to protecting and engaging our community and neighbors as we clean up the Site and plan for its safe, beneficial reuse. In collaboration with EPA and MDEQ, the Multistate Trust strives to keep the community and other stakeholders informed and involved in our work.
The Multistate Trust is committed to including the community in the investigation, cleanup, and redevelopment planning process, whenever possible. The Multistate Trust has trained and hired local, small businesses and individuals, providing skills, certifications, and experience that can help lead to future work in the environmental sector. Our training and contracting model has been described as a pioneering example that could be followed in other communities experiencing environmental contamination across the country.
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