EPA, contractors outline drum-by-drum plan to remove 51,000 buried barrels near Springfield aquifer

U.S. and state environmental officials and the contractors overseeing the Tremont (also referred to in presentation as the Fremont City) barrel field told the Springfield City Commission the site is now at the 30% remedial-design stage and that they plan to remove roughly 51,000 buried drums “one barrel at a time.”

The officials said the drums — buried in the mid-1970s in an unlined facility — are close enough to the regional aquifer used for drinking water that the cleanup must proceed slowly to avoid creating new contamination. “This is not gonna be a quick process nor should it be,” Robert Rule of Demaximus said, describing a phased removal and onsite staging approach. Rule also said the responsible parties are paying for the work under a binding consent decree.

The 30% design has been submitted to U.S. EPA and Ohio EPA for review; contractors said more detailed design and specifications will come with later submittals. Officials said they completed one baseline groundwater sampling event last November–December and plan two more baseline events — one this fall/winter and one in the spring — before active construction begins so the remedial…