News Releases from Region 04

Townsend Saw Chain Co. Superfund Site in Columbia, South Carolina, recognized for Partial Deletion from Superfund National Priorities List

EPA provides lasting benefit to communities by deleting all or part of Superfund sites from the National Priorities List

COLUMBIA, S.C.  (Nov. 5, 2019) – Today, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 4 Administrator Mary S. Walker joined state and local officials to recognize the Townsend Saw Chain Co. Superfund Site project team in Columbia for the partial deletion of the site from the National Priorities List (NPL).  

EPA announced that in Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 the agency deleted all or part of 27 sites from Superfund’s National Priorities List NPL.This marks the largest number of deletions in a single year since FY 2001. This also represents the third year in a row that EPA has significantly increased the number of sites deleted from the NPL, helping communities move forward in reusing and redeveloping the land by making it clear that cleanup is complete.

“The extensive site redevelopment at the Townsend Saw Chain Co. Superfund Site is ongoing and will continue as a result of the recent partial deletion of 399 acres out of the 400 acres site from the NPL,” said EPA Region 4 Administrator Mary S. Walker. "A successful cleanup is a win-win that supports economic growth and a more sustainable community."

From an environmental perspective, the potential responsible party (PRP) is expediting the groundwater cleanup of the remaining monitoring wells that have not attained cleanup goals. The EPA is working closely with South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (SCDHEC) personnel to monitor this situation and expects that the site will attain cleanup standards in the next 12-18 months paving the way for a final NPL deletion of the remaining 1- acre tract. 

Redevelopment through private investments includes a manufacturing plant - AMBAC International (formerly American Bosch), an American manufacturer and supplier of fuel injection equipment; a veterinary hospital; pet kennel; hotel; an auto-body shop; and a Harley Davidson motorcycle dealership. Additional site uses include a professional and industrial park, two retail stores, a gas station, residential developments, and restaurants. Together, these businesses employ over 150 people, contribute approximately $7 million in annual employee income, and generate about $16 million in estimated annual sales, and nearly $360,000 in local property taxes. 

Background:

The Townsend Saw Chain Superfund site is in Columbia, S.C. The site includes the area where two former metal product manufacturers operated from 1964 to 1981. The EPA placed the Townsend Saw Chain site on the NPL in 1990 because of contaminated groundwater and soil resulting from improper wastewater disposal. The EPA, SCDHEC, and Textron, Inc. - the site’s PRP - have investigated site conditions and taken steps to clean up the site to protect human health and the environment from the contamination. Contamination at the site does not threaten the health of people living nor working near the site. Today, the site remains protective through on ongoing groundwater treatment, institutional controls, and Five-Year Reviews.

EPA deletes sites or parts of sites from the NPL when no further cleanup is required to protect human health or the environment. Years, and sometimes decades, of complex investigation and cleanup work has gone into getting these sites to where they are today. This important milestone indicates to communities that cleanup is complete and that sites are protective of human health and the environment.

While EPA encourages site reuse throughout the cleanup process, deletions from the NPL can help revitalize communities and promote economic growth by signaling to potential developers and financial institutions that cleanup is complete. Over the past several years, the agency has focused on streamlining the deletion process and increasing the number of opportunities to demonstrate to communities that cleanup is complete.

Additional information about EPA’s NPL deletions can be viewed at

https://19january2021snapshot.epa.gov/superfund/deleted-national-priorities-list-npl-sites-state

The Superfund Task Force Accomplishments can be viewed at https://19january2021snapshot.epa.gov/superfund/superfund-task-force-recommendations-and-accomplishments

To search for information about these and other NPL sites, please visit https://19january2021snapshot.epa.gov/superfund/search-superfund-sites-where-you-live

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