Attachement Nine
How the Hazardous Waste Spills Impact the Groundwater
There is data to show from Community Water Company, which wisely did extra water testing for sulfates, that the spills do impact groundwater, even though the groundwater table is at several hundred feet. I noticed spikes in sulfate and TDS in the Community Water Company. Naturally, I wondered what caused them. It was later that I found out about the spills and wondered if there was any correlation.
They did not appear to be testing errors because
1) They did not necessarily occur on the same test date.
2) There was a gradual increase, a spike, then a decrease.
3) The increase was of sulfate, but not of other common metals.
The sudden increases, then lowering of the levels, are not indicative of a traditional sulfate plume, or of a testing abnormality.
The problem in analyzing the data was finding the time frame that the sulfuric acid would flow from the spill in the mill/leach area to the public supply wells. I finally found the magic number!
The trip takes 39 months. Of six correlations available, four in a row were 39 months, then 24 months, then 21 months. It could be expected that with time the spills make a path to make the trip faster.
Date correlation of Sulfuric Acid Spills and Spikes in Sulfates in Community Water Well #8
Spill Date |
Date of Spike in Water Testing Data |
Travel time to wells, ± 2 miles |
|
|
|
11/12/94 |
First known spill |
|
1/03/96 |
4/02/99 |
39 months |
7/08/96 |
10/26/99 |
39 months |
7/97 |
10/18/00 |
39 months |
5/98 |
8/04/01 |
36 months |
5/00 |
4/8/02 |
23 months |
7/01 |
4/21/03 |
21 months |
|
|
|
Community Water Company Water Testing Data
Well Number 8
Drilled 7/94
Year of Test or Spill* |
Hardness |
Calcium
mg/l |
Sulfate
mg/ltr |
TDS |
Percentage of Sulfate in TDS |
6/1/94 (1 st) |
65 |
70.6 |
94.5 |
266 |
35% |
6/1/94 (4 th) |
146 |
46.7 |
59.8 |
286 |
21% |
11/03/94 |
7,000 gallons |
Sulfuric Acid |
|
|
|
12/19/94 |
5,000 gallons |
Leach Solution |
|
|
|
10/05/95 |
160 |
59.96 |
-- |
422 |
|
11/20/95 |
|
|
138 |
396 |
35% |
1/08/96 |
4,000 lbs. |
Sulfuric Acid |
|
|
|
1/10/96 |
2,000 lbs. |
Sulfuric Acid |
|
|
|
2/21/96 |
1,850 lbs. |
Spent electrolyte |
|
|
|
3/23/96 |
3,000 lbs. |
Sulfuric Acid |
|
|
|
4/15/96 |
|
|
210 |
376 |
55.6% |
6/12/96 |
13,263 lbs. |
Spent electrolyte |
|
|
|
7/22/96 |
3,000 lbs. |
Sulfuric Acid |
|
|
|
8/07/96 |
|
|
131 |
470 |
28% |
8/11/96 |
100 gallons |
Sulfuric Acid |
|
|
|
9/11/96 |
|
|
374 |
546 |
69% |
10/21/96 |
|
|
-- |
406 |
|
1/13/97 |
|
|
233 |
640 |
36.4% |
3/29/97 |
8,000 lbs. |
Sulfuric Acid-93% |
|
|
|
7/11/97 |
2,798 lbs. |
Sulfuric Acid |
|
|
|
7/16/97 |
|
|
297 |
564 |
52.6% |
10/27/97 |
|
|
337 |
728 |
46.3% |
12/23/97 |
|
|
329 |
616 |
53.4% |
2/09/98 |
|
|
340 |
613 |
55.5% |
5/04/98 |
120,000 gallons |
SulfuricAcid/Cu |
|
|
|
5/05/98 |
40,000 gallons |
SulfuricAcid/Cu |
|
|
|
6/22/98 |
|
|
356 |
873 |
40.7% |
8/10/98 |
|
|
360 |
748 |
48.1% |
11/30/98 |
|
|
553 |
696 |
79.5% |
2/10/99 |
381 |
131 |
371 |
741 |
50.0% |
4/12/99 |
|
|
820 |
1280 |
64.1% |
7/15/99 |
|
|
405 |
766 |
52.8% |
10/26/99 |
502 |
170 |
521 |
808 |
64.5% |
1/11/00 |
521 |
179 |
390 |
757 |
51.5% |
4/19/00 |
|
|
409 |
768 |
53.3% |
5/22/00 |
5,350 gallons |
SulfuricAcid/Cu |
|
|
|
8/14/00 |
|
|
442 |
880 |
50.2% |
10/18/00 |
|
|
456 |
704 |
64.7% |
1/30/01 |
488 |
164 |
428 |
780 |
54.9% |
4/04/01 |
|
|
430 |
-- |
|
7/03/01 |
1,209 lbs. |
Sulfuric Acid |
|
|
|
8/14/01 |
|
|
474 |
826 |
57.4 |
10/15/01 |
|
|
479 |
896 |
53.5 |
1/31/02 |
39,375 gallons |
Sulfuric Acid |
|
|
|
2/06/02 |
488 |
166 |
475 |
922 |
51.5 |
4/08/02 |
|
|
476 |
776 |
61.3 |
7/10/02 |
|
|
481 |
863 |
55.7 |
11/05/02 |
|
|
487 |
908 |
53.6 |
2003 |
565 |
190 |
547 |
956 |
57.2 |
2/04/03 |
519 |
175 |
504 |
871 |
57.9 |
4/19/03 |
8,722 lbs. |
Sulfuric Acid |
|
|
|
4/21/03 |
|
|
508 |
820 |
62. |
2004 |
587 |
|
502 |
952 |
52.7 |
*Note: Spill data given in red.
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