Site Summaries
Superfund Sites
Bradford Island - Columbia River, Multnomah County
In March 2022, Bradford Island was listed on the Federal Superfund's National Priority List (NPL). EHAP has begun a Public Health Assessment to evaluate the impacts of the site's contamination on the nearby communities.
Black Butte Mine - Cottage Grove, Lane County
In 2010, the Black Butte Mine was listed on the Federal Superfund program's National Priority List (NPL). EHAP has begun site assessment activities to evaluate human health risks from the abandoned mercury mine and how it impacts the health of the public nearby.
Formosa Mine - Riddle, Douglas County
In 2007, the Formosa Mine, an abandoned copper and zinc mine, was added to the Federal Superfund program's National Priority List (NPL). As a cooperative agreement partner of the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, EHAP completed a health assessment to determine the risks to public health from acid rock drainage that is flowing from the mine.
Harbor Oil - Portland, Multnomah County
EHAP was asked by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) to evaluate the public health significance of exposure to contaminants found at the Harbor Oil Recycling Facility, and neighboring Force Lake.
Portland Harbor - Portland, Multnomah County
The Portland Harbor Superfund site is currently considered the portion of the Willamette River that spans from the southern tip of Sauvie Island to the Fremont Bridge. It was proposed for the National Priorities List in late July 2000 and listed in December 2000. This section is the most industrialized segment of the river and also supports heavy marine traffic. EHAP was asked by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry to evaluate the public health significance of exposure to the contaminants of concern, which include PCBs, dioxins, heavy metals, and other hazardous substances. EHAP also assessed whether or not using the Harbor on a recreational basis is of health concern. EHAP investigated the public health significance of physical hazards at the upland site known as Willamette Cove. In July, 2003 a
final report for Willamette Cove (pdf) was released.
Taylor Lumber - Sheridan, Yamhill County
Taylor Lumber and Treating, on the western edge of Sheridan, was listed as a Superfund site on June 14, 2001. EHAP was asked by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) to evaluate the public health significance of past contamination from wood treating chemicals used in lumber treating and product processes at a former wood treating facility.
Teledyne Wah Chang - Albany, Linn County
EHAP was asked by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) to evaluate whether or not past practices of the company were of public health concern to those who recreated and fished in nearby second lake. Wah Chang is one of the only superfund sites that is still an operational facility.
Hazardous Waste or Industrial Sites
AmeriTies West - The Dalles, Wasco County
EHAP, in collaboration with ATSDR, conducted a Health Consultation to address the community’s concerns of naphthalene exposure from emissions coming out of the AmeriTies Corporation facility. In May 2018, the Health Consultation addressing this question was released, using data collected in 2016 by Oregon's Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ).
Bullseye Glass - SE Portland, Multnomah County
In response to a USFS moss study and DEQ air monitoring, EHAP is conducting a Public Health Assessment for the community surrounding Bullseye Glass Co. in Southeast Portland. The PHA will determine any long-term health risks before and after the facility took steps to reduce their toxic metals emissions.
Burns Air Force Radar Station - Near the cities of Burns and Hines in Harney County
EHAP was asked by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to evaluate the public health significance of exposure to asbestos at the former Burns Air Force Radar Station near the cities of Burns and Hines in Harney County. The people that may be affected by the asbestos and physical hazards are mainly trespassers and maintenance workers at the site.
Jantzen Beach - Portland, Multnomah County
Since August of 2015, residents in the Jantzen Beach area of the Columbia River have been reporting noxious odors that are negatively affecting their health. The Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) has been working with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to determine where the odors are coming from. The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) assessed the potential health risks to residents from exposure to chemicals emitted by the two oil re-refineries and wrote a “letter health consultation” (LHC) based on their findings.
J. H. Baxter Plant - Eugene, Lane County
EHAP was asked by the Lane Regional Air Pollution Authority (LRAPA) to evaluate whether there are health risks to the public from exposure to emissions from the JH Baxter woodtreating plant.
Ken Foster Farms - Sherwood, Washington County
The Ken Foster Farms site is a 40-acre tract of historic pasture land at the southeast corner of Sherwood. The US EPA requested that EHAP evaluate the public health impact of soil contaminated by animal wastes (animal tissue, fat, and hair), chromium-treated animal hides and scraps, and waste water sludge from settling tanks.
Lebanon groundwater - Lebanon, Linn County
This site is an area in Lebanon where PCE, a dry cleaning chemical, was first detected in an irrigation well near the downtown area, in August 1990. The Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Environmental Quality tested over 120 private wells in the area and found levels of concern in some of the wells for PCE and TCE. EHAP was asked to review the data and determine the public health risks.
Lower Bridge Mine - Terrebonne, Deschutes County
This former diatomaceous earth mine encompasses more than 570 acres. EHAP was asked by Senator Ben Westlund (D-Bend) to review all available environmental data for the site, in order to determine if the land could be safely re-zoned from industrial use to a residential development.
Perchlorate Area - North Morrow and Northwestern Umatilla Counties
EHAP has been asked by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) to address potential health concerns associated with drinking water that is contaminated with perchlorate. This site investigation was started after the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality and the Environmental Protection Agency detected perchlorate in several groundwater wells in the area.
North Ridge Estates - North of Klamath Falls
In the summer of 2002, over 49 tons of asbestos-containing material (ACM) were removed from the surface of 30 lots in the North Ridge Estates subdivision three miles north of Klamath Falls. The ACM are remnants from the demolition of the Marine Recuperational Barracks, a complex of over 80 buildings constructed in 1944 to provide care for soldiers recovering from tropical diseases. DEQ contacted EHAP program to assess the health risks from exposure to ACM fragments.
Precision Castparts (PCC) - SE Portland, Multnomah County
EHAP was asked by the Southern Portland Air Quality Group (SPAC) to evaluate whether there are long-term health risks to residents and the public from exposure to emissions from the PCC facility.
Redmond Tallow - Deschutes County
In the winter of 2002, the Oregon Department of Human Services was advised by Deschutes County Environmental Health Department of groundwater contamination related to historical and current activities from the Redmond Tallow rendering plant, a privately owned and operated business in central Oregon. In cooperation with county health personnel, ODHS evaluated water data, recommended additional testing, and assessed the potential for human exposure to contaminated water on the site and in nearby private wells. The principal contaminant of concern is nitrate ion released into surface soil on the site.
Red Rock Road - Sutherlin, Douglas County
EHAP was asked by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to evaluate the public health significance of exposure to mercury along a stretch of road that was built with mine tailings from a former mercury mine.
Salem-Keizer School District - Salem-Keizer, Marion County
EHAP was asked by the Salem-Keizer School District to evaluate the public health significance of exposure to mercury found in gym flooring in some schools throughout the district. The Salem-Keizer School District also requested that EHAP evaluate several school buses that were involved in a fire, in order to determine if they posed a health risk for children who may ride them.
Supreme Perlite - Portland, Multnomah County
EHAP was asked by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) to evaluate the public health significance of exposure to asbestos at this site, one of 28 major former processors nationwide of vermiculite from Libby, Montana.
Sutherlin Valley Arsenic - Douglas County
EHAP was asked by The Douglas County Health Department to evaluate the potential health risks from arsenic-contaminated wells in the Sutherlin valley areas. High levels of naturally occurring arsenic were found in well water east of Sutherlin, in the Hinkle Creek area. EHAP encourages all well owners to have their well water tested for arsenic.
Union Pacific Railyard - NW Eugene, Lane County
Public health and DEQ are concerned about the groundwater contamination and the potential effect it has on nearby neighborhoods. EHAP wrote a report in 2007 that evaluated the public health implications of the contamination, and a follow up report in 2009 that addressed the unanswered question of whether homes were being affected by "vapor intrusion" from volatile organic chemicals (VOCs) migrating up through the soil and into the indoor air of nearby homes.
Uroboros Glass - N Portland, Multnomah County
In response to a USFS moss study and DEQ air monitoring, EHAP is conducting a Public Health Assessment for the community surrounding Uroboros Glass in North Portland. The PHA will evaluate any long-term health risks from metals emissions.
Vermiculite NW (former) - Portland, Multnomah County
EHAP was asked by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) to evaluate the public health significance of exposure to asbestos at this site, one of 28 major former processors nationwide of vermiculite from Libby, Montana.
View-Master Factory - Hall Boulevard, Beaverton, Oregon
The View-Master stereoscopic slide viewer has been a popular children's toy since the 1950s. For nearly half a century, View-Masters were made exclusively at a factory located on Hall Boulevard in Beaverton, Oregon. Throughout this period, an on-site supply well provided water for industrial purposes and for human consumption. In March 1998, chemical analysis of the View-Master factory supply well revealed the presence of the degreasing agent trichloroethylene (TCE) at concentrations as high as 1,670 micrograms per liter (µg/L).
Willamette Cove, East Parcel Beach - Portland, Multnomah County
The
final Health Consultation on the East Parcel Beach at Willamette Cove (pdf) and a fact sheet were released in April, 2013. High levels of lead were found in the sandy beach soil, and EHAP considers this an area of public health concern. Metro is working on posting signs to warn the public of chemical contamination.
Exposure Investigations
Aplastic Anemia Investigation - Oregon/Washington Border
In response to a citizen inquiry, the Oregon Public Health Division and the Washington Department of Health led a multi-agency investigation to assess rates of aplastic anemia and certain cancers in Columbia County, Oregon and Cowlitz County, Washington. This report also reviews the possible role of exposure to benzene from specific sources as a cause of disease in these counties. EHAP was not directly involved in this investigation.
Bonanza Mine - Sutherlin, Douglas County
EHAP was asked by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to evaluate the public health significance of exposure to mercury and arsenic in the soil and mine tailings from a former mercury mine.
Triangle Lake / HWY 36 - Lane County
In the spring of 2011, several residents of the Triangle Lake/ Highway 36 area had their urine analyzed by Emory researcher Dana Barr, for the herbicides 2,4,D & Atrazine. All samples came back positive, which sparked concern among public health officials. For years, citizens have reported health symptoms related to the spraying of herbicides in areas of the coastal mountains that have been logged. The Oregon Department of Forestry asked the
Pesticide Analytical Response Center (PARC), of which the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) is a co-chair, to look into the matter. In November 2014, OHA released the final Public Health Assessment for Highway 36 (pdf).
Non Site-specific
NW Eugene - Eugene, Lane County
To address community concerns about cancer, EHAP has been working with the Oregon State Cancer Registry (OSCaR) to obtain and analyze the number of AML, brain cancer as well as nasal and lung cancer cases in River Road, Trainsong, and Bethel neighborhoods.