BILLINGS — The Environmental Protection Agency is holding a meeting in Billings on Wednesday night to explain its installation plans of vapor-mitigation devices in homes within section of town contaminated decades ago by the dumping of toxic dry-cleaning chemicals.
The site was identified by the federal government 20 years ago as a Superfund site when the EPA found polluted groundwater in a large section of the city near downtown Billings. Federal regulators said the cause was chemicals dumped on the ground by a longtime laundromat on Central Avenue.
Watch this video to hear from residents in the affected area:
Since then, the EPA has been actively working to restore groundwater quality in the affected neighborhoods. On Tuesday, residents recalled those early days in interviews with MTN News.
"I remember when they were digging and what not, looking for bad groundwater," said longtime Billings resident Jerry Jeffries. "I know that they warned people about it."
Jeffries lives on Cook Avenue, inside the area where polluted groundwater was found. Still, he said he was never bothered by the potential health risk.
"Like I said, I don't have to worry about it because I use city water," Jeffries said. "I've been here for 30 years, actually 35 years. If it was going to get me, it would've got me by now."
The EPA has spent 20 years working to clean the 1,000 acres of contaminated area, which starts on First Avenue North and runs all the way to Industrial Avenue.
"The primary concern is PCE (perchloroethylene), which is a chemical solvent typically used in historical dry-cleaning operations," said EPA Billings site project co-manager Layla Landeros.
Landeros said that the cleanup comes with three phases, beginning with the groundwater and soil, before moving onto the air. The Superfund designation requires the federal government to step in and clean up the site, which includes money for mitigation.
"We are concerned with three different types of contaminated media," said Landeros. "This summer we have released the proposal plan to address vapor intrusion in the Billings area."
That plan will begin with a public input meeting at the Billings library at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday.
"We will go through all of the proposed plan details, collect public comment and answer any questions," Landeros said.
Landeros added that on top of sharing information about the plan, the EPA will also spread the word about mitigation devices, which the agency is suggesting residents living in the contaminated area install.
"That fan will eventually pull up the vapors," Landeros said, explaining how the device works. "Pull them through the PVC pipe and pull them into the carbon filter and admit them into the atmosphere."
The EPA is expecting a packed crowd at Wednesday's meeting. Even unconcerned residents such as Jeffries plan to attend.
"I'll go to the meeting," Jeffries said. "I would like to see what kind of actions they're taking."
Related:
EPA proposed adding contaminated Billings site to Superfund list
EPA makes Billings site a priority on Superfund list
EPA tackles Billings Superfund site that deals with toxic-chemical vapors
