Case Study: Wilson Concepts of Florida, Inc.

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Wilson Concepts of Florida, Inc.

The case study that I received was concerning a company named Wilson Concepts of Florida, Inc. This corporation is a two-acre sight located in an industrial area of Pompano Beach. The company manufactured machine parts from 1974 to 1987. Since 1998 the company has been leased by an active machinery operation. Between 1967 and 1974 Southwest Tool and Die, Inc leased the facility. Some of the activities that took place on sight included machining, drilling, milling of metal parts, vibrating, deburring, degreasing, steam cleaning, as well as spray on coating of parts. Historic reports show the company was cited several times for violations of county regulations pertaining to the discharge of waste into the ground and the overflow of wastes from two underground tanks into a storm drain, which eventually also dripped into the ground. This waste led to the contamination of the ground, which was noticed in groundwater samples. This caused the sole source of drinking water to be become contaminated.

The source of the pollutant came from the runoff, as a result of the types of industrial activities that were going on at the facility. The main issue was the runoff from the dye that was being used at the plant. This runoff came from watersheds and drainage basins that leaked into monitoring wells, storm drains, and aquifers from the runoff.

This industrial area had a huge effect not on just the environment but the people living around it as well. The aquifer under the site was used as the sole source of drinking water for all of the residents in the county of Broward. This aquifer was obviously contaminated. There were large cavities in the quartz sand that overlies the limestone of the aquifer, which facilitated the movement of contaminants into the groundwater as well as the drinking water.

The EPA has been involved in trying to clean up the site at the source of pollution. This took place in 1991 when the EPA took over the investigation. As of 1992 the EPA determined that the site did not threaten the surrounding community or the environment. The only action that was required was groundwater monitoring. On April 4, 1995 this particular sight was deleted from the NPL (National Properties List) and no further reviews or warrants have been needed since. In conclusion this sight was a major concern for a short time, and the sight has not had any problems since the 1992 inspection.

References

Wilson Concepts of Florida, Inc. “Galiber Cleanup Site Summaries” 6/24/88, 1998

EPA. Superfund Record of Decision: Site Narrative for Wilson Concepts. Poppano Beach Fl. EPA/ROD/R04-92/124-1992.

Keller A. Introduction to Environmental Geology, Forth Ed. University of California, Santa, Barbara. 2008.