No TCE found in first tests near Sun City homes

No trace of the toxic chemical trichloroethene (TCE) has been detected by new vapor wells installed near the Sun City Lincoln Hills property line. Activists have long claimed an underground cloud of TCE-contaminated groundwater is moving steadily toward homes. The results of these first tests were announced Thursday at the quarterly public meeting of the Restoration Advisory Board (RAB), a consortium of federal and state officials, along with community members appointed in March by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Working together, they hope to decide on a plan for cleaning up the former Titan 1-A missile facility that housed three missiles in underground silos for three years in the 1960s. "If the next rounds of tests show the same results, it should reassure homeowners' concerns," said Ranny Eckstrom, a retired engineer and community co-chair of the RAB. "I welcome the good news, which replaces speculation with facts." TCE was used as a degreaser and cleaning solvent at the former missile facility off Oak Tree Lane. It also was a popular additive to foods and even used as an anesthesia until it was banned for food and medical uses in 1977. TCE was first detected at the former missile site in 1991 and remediation work removed some of the contaminated soil until the work was stalled for 10 years over who was responsible for the contamination. The goal now is to gather updated and accurate information about the extent and location of the TCE-contaminated groundwater before agreeing on a restoration plan. But the news over the TCE findings was quickly overshadowed by another announcement: Low levels of benzene, another cancer-causing substance, was detected by two soil vapor probes near SCLH and three others probes near the parking lot at nearby St. Joseph Catholic Church. It is not known where the benzene came from, though it is found in a variety of products, from gasoline and glues to cleaning products and paint thinners. Several residents were obviously upset by this news, though more than one official from the state water board explained it was too soon to be alarmed because the levels are low and benzene rarely travels to the surface and quickly dissipates when it does. Several in attendance also criticized RAB members for spending too much time introducing themselves and sharing what they were working on instead of getting right to the results of this round of tests and progress toward coming up with a cleanup plan. "Tell us what you are doing about it," one man said at the meeting, held at Kilaga Springs Lodge in SCLH. The Army Corps of Engineers is tasked with cleaning up the former missile site, along with other similar sites that left behind a legacy of pollution. Project manager Tim Crummett from the Corps of Engineers called for a debriefing session with the community members of the RAB to make improvements for the next quarterly public meeting, which is tentatively scheduled for Oct. 24. "Bottom line: We are gaining ground, moving forward, and some friction is to be expected," he wrote in an email to RAB members Friday morning. Sandi Dolbee is a member of the Restoration Advisory Board.