Ridding landfill of oozing 3M chemicals will be costly, lengthy

By DAVID SHAFFER, Star Tribune

Last update: January 7, 2008 - 10:12 PM

Minnesota is facing a major cleanup that will take up to five years to halt chemicals from oozing out of the former Washington County landfill into the groundwater in Lake Elmo, state pollution control officials said Monday.

The cost for what is considered the best cleanup option is now estimated at $27.6 million, which would make it the most expensive such effort under the state landfill remediation program.

That plan would unearth 35 acres of waste and put it in a new leakproof landfill on the site. It is considered the best option to halt the release of 3M chemicals buried amid the garbage, according to a consultant's assessment presented Monday to Lake Elmo residents

"What we are trying to do is entomb the waste so it no longer leaches out," said Peter Tiffany, a senior engineer with the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, which owns and manages the closed landfill.

He and other state officials met Monday with residents who live close to the landfill.

Another cleanup method -- digging up and incinerating the waste using advanced plasma-torch technology -- would cost $192 million, the assessment found.

State officials said they would check with waste management companies about whether the technology can be used to clean up a dump.

The 3M chemical PFBA, a coatings compound used in photographic films and other products, was dumped legally in the landfill three decades ago. Ramsey and Washington counties operated the landfill for many years, mainly for garbage disposal. It is located just south of Lake Jane.

Chemicals from the landfill and another company-owned closed dump in Oakdale have turned up in 387 private wells in the area, according to the Minnesota Department of Health. About 200 homes have been shifted to city water service, and others have had filter systems installed.

If state officials decide to dig up and line the landfill, more money will be needed. Based on earlier estimates, the agency asked for $15 million in state bonds for the work. That money, along with $8 million pledged from 3M, will not be enough.

Engineering consultants Short Elliott Hendrickson Inc., added the design tab and other costs, bringing the total estimate to $27.6 million. Shawn Ruotsinoja, project leader for the MPCA, said the agency may need to tap other sources. 3M officials could not be reached for comment Monday.

Ruotsinoja said that the construction would produce odors, noise and litter and that the new lined landfill would likely have a grass-covered mound 25 to 40 feet higher than the existing grade.

Under an agreement with the state, 3M is studying how to clean up the Oakdale site and another former dump in Woodbury that have caused groundwater contamination.

David Shaffer • 612-673-7090