MADISON HEIGHTS (WXYZ) — A plan has been announced regarding the cleanup of contaminated groundwater from the former Electro-Plating Services (EPS) facility in Madison Heights.
RELATED: 59K gallons of contaminated liquid removed from I-696 green ooze site in Madison Heights
Back in December 2019, the Michigan EGLE, along with the help of the U.S. Environemental Protection Agency (EPA), started investigating the site after yellow-green ooze containing toxic chemicals was seen oozing onto the shoulder of I-696.
Those contaminants are hexavalent chromium, trichloroethylene (TCE), cyanide and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), officials found.
RELATED: Man whose company is responsible for green ooze on I-696 reports to federal prison
Since then, the EPA has collected 260,540 gallons of contaminated groundwater and hauled it off-site for treatment and disposal, a release states. Because this method isn't sustainable in the long-term, the EPA and EGLE will now use an in-place treatment to treat the contamination at the site.
This is how it will work:
- The treatment chemicals that degrade contaminants will be injected into the subsurface soil.
- As ground soil naturally migrates through the soil, it will move through the injection area, treating the contaminated site.
This process will begin in July.
There are also currently court proceedings underway to authorize the demolition of the site, which is a more permanent solution to ridding the area of contamination.
