Superfund status sought for grain facility near Spokane
Published 1:08 pm Tuesday, March 24, 2015
SPOKANE — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency wants to add a grain handling facility in Freeman to the federal Superfund list of cleanup priorities.
The agency made the proposal on Tuesday.
The EPA’s site inspection found carbon tetrachloride and chloroform in soil at the grain handling facility and in groundwater collected from nearby water wells.
One of the contamined wells is the sole water supply for the Freeman School District campus, which includes their primary, middle and high schools.
The Freeman School District water system serves about 900 people.
At present, a water treatment system is keeping the school’s water supply safe for drinking. But the long term objective is to clean up the pollution.
State and local officials requested the EPA involvement.
