Bunker Hill Superfund Site Q & A

Hot Topics and Bridging Communication: Q: I noticed construction near Big Creek Road, what’s going on? A: The Big Creek soil waste repository is being expanded to allow capacity for soil clean up. Trees and brush have been removed from the side of the repository visible from I-90, the CDA Bike Trail, and Big Creek Road. Through EPA Basin Bulletins, CCC Meetings, and other Basin Commission meetings citizens responded that they were concerned with visual changes seen from the trail. As agreed, the strip of mature dogwood, alder, and conifers between the trail and the expanded area of the repository, will not be removed. You may call Terry Harwood about construction operations at (208) 783-2528. Vegetation cleared at Big Creek is being utilized for composting at the Page Repository. Q: What happened at the Page Repository Open House? A: The open house was hosted by the Bunker Hill Task Force, which is the local working group and citizen forum that provides council to the state and federal agencies about cleanup issues in the ‘Box’ (Kingston up to Elizabeth Park). The Page Repository is planned to be expanded westward in 2012. Citizens who came to the open house shared ideas about enhancing or creating substitute wetlands. They also said that the bike trail should remain open during proposed construction, and that both new vegetation and variation of the repository shape could improve the scenery. Bruce Schuld is the point of contact for questions about finalizing a plan at (208) 373-0554. Q: There is standing water in the Cataldo Flats and around the East Mission Flats Repository. Can the repository be open for use? A: Yes, contractors, citizens and governments can bring contaminated soil to the repository for disposal. The area currently used for disposal is not underwater. No contaminated material will be disposed of in the water at EMF. Using the repository will not contaminate the water and continued monitoring shows that the repository is not the source for metals in the river. The source of contamination is from the bed, banks, and floodplain of the Coeur d’Alene River because they are chock full of tailings from the old days. Q: Is the Jack Waite Mine site going to be removed? A: Yes, tailings are being cleaned up, although it’s not a part of the Bunker Hill Superfund Site. The mine site included a mill, mine, railway, and two nearby creeks. Reclamation at the site dates back to 1979 when the U.S. Forest Service diverted one creek around tailings piles. Since then, two tailings piles have been stabilized, pulled away from the creek, and contoured to keep tails from running off into the creek. The remainder of tailings cleanup is planned to be complete this year. In 2012, site restoration and stream work will be completed. When the project is finished the area will be greener, and the streams will benefit, too. Many local generations have worked at the Jack Waite, including my great-grandfather in the 1930’s. EPA and Forest Service are working with the Idaho Historic Preservation Office and Wallace Mining Museum to collect extensive historical information, including oral histories of those who worked at the Jack Waite. While no large structures remain at the site, a rich history of information and artifacts will be preserved for future generations.