Yavapai County offers residents testing for heavy metals at future town hall
The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality met with residents about the Cottonwood slag pile on Wednesday, Sept. 23, at the Cottonwood Recreation Center, and discussed two processes that Minerals Research Inc is going through to address environmental concerns.
The meeting presented MRI’s draft air quality permit, which includes the operating conditions, at Birch and Cherry streets, as well as an overview of the Voluntary Remediation Program.
The prior public meeting about the slag pile was March 19, held jointly by ADEQ and the Arizona Department of Health Services. On Aug. 7, Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 7400, located at 705 E. Aspen St immediately north of the slag processing operation, was accepted into ADEQ’s Voluntary Remediation Program.
The VRP allows property owners to voluntarily investigate and clean up environmental contamination through an expedited process to restore sites to healthful standards.
“After you become accepted,” into VRP “the volunteer submits a work plan, stating what work they’re going to do, and then that goes out to public comment,” ADEQ Senior Hydrogeologist Hazel Cox, Ph.D., said. “Once the public comment period is over and ADEQ approves the work plan, then the work can happen. So it’s a very quick process. So we are expecting MRI’s work plan in the first couple weeks of October, and you expect to see that there’s a 45-day public comment period on the work plan.”
MRI is expected to submit a work plan for the proposed remedial actions and to reduce dust exposure at the VFW in early October, follow by public comment.
The formal public participation period is open until Monday, Nov. 30, followed by ADEQ responding to comments before it makes its final air quality permit decision.
Air Quality Conditions The key conditions of the Individual Class II Minor Source draft air quality permit are to reduce emissions from the work site and include:
- Chemical dust suppression on roadways at the site.
- Any blasting of the slag pile would require 72-hour advance notification to ADEQ and would be restricted to 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., and could not be done when sustained winds are over 25 miles-per-hour.
- Compliance reporting.
- Testing of emissions control equipment.
“With the wind speed threshold being 25 miles per hour — I have an agricultural background and for instance, spraying pesticide is completely inappropriate at that wind speed,” Yavapai County Supervisor and Vice Chairwoman Nikki Check [D-District 3] said during the meeting.
ADEQ’s air monitoring at the VFW and Cottonwood Kids Park sites are included in the state’s permitting decision, with officials noting that all lead and particulate samples were below EPA health-based standards.
While monitoring results showed pollutants beneath federal limits, the VFW remains a concern during high winds. As previously reported by The Journal, ADHS officials noted that on windy days, particulates up to 10 micrometers near the VFW can affecting sensitive people, such as those with asthma.
Next Steps “I’m also really excited to learn that the state department of health is going to sponsor 100 urine sample tests for monitoring heavy metals,” Check said at a Town Hall on Sept. 3. “So if you know anybody who’s concerned about that… people will hopefully be able to actually leave their sample with our public health department” at the November Town Hall.
The heavy metal screening by Yavapai County is not directly tied material from the Cottonwood slag pile, however, Check said, however testing at the Town Hall will allow anyone who resides in Yavapai County residents to find resources.
“There’s plenty of other sources of heavy-metal contamination,” Check said. “For example, arsenic in wells, or lead paint in your home or just the geologic concentrations and the dirt and dust in mining communities like Clarkdale or Jerome.”
A formal public hearing about MRI’s air quality permit is scheduled for Wednesday, Nov. 18, from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at the Cottonwood Recreation Center at 150 S. Sixth St.
The meeting’s presentation materials and more information about the draft air quality permit is available online azdeq.gov/aqd/mri.
For more information about the voluntary remediation program visit azdeq.gov/vrp/vfw.
Questions and comments may be directed to ADEQ Air Permits and Compliance Manager Tim Pippenger at 602-370-7358 or Pippenger.tim@azdeq.gov.
