Compound seeping from former McLouth Steel site into creek prompts worries

A milky substance seeping into Monguagon Creek from the former McLouth Steel site in March has been identified by state environmental inspectors as calcium hydroxide, a compound as alkaline as undiluted bleach.

It's unclear how much of the substance was released into the creek, also known as Huntington Creek, which flows into the Trenton Channel and then the Detroit River, said Jeff Johnston, spokesperson for the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy.

EGLE inspectors also don't know how long the compound has been seeping onto the ground's surface or into the creek. The state agency warned property owner Crown Enterprises in a May 2 letter that the company had to take action to control the compound, which it characterized as an "observed imminent and substantial threat to human health or the environment."

Calcium hydroxide has historically been present on the site. The EPA launched a time-critical response more than a decade ago after a compound with high pH was released into Monguagon Creek, causing an "imminent threat" to public health.

Calcium hydroxide has been observed in at least two places this year: on the ground near a railroad crossing on West Jefferson Avenue and in the creek to the east. Both locations are on the Riverview side of the former McLouth site, which is in both Riverview and Trenton.

After seeing the March release, EGLE inspectors looked for evidence of previous calcium hydroxide pollution and found a 2015 photo that shows a similar milky substance discharging into the creek from the same spot near the railroad crossing. But they don't know whether 2015 was the first time the compound seeped from the site or how many times it has happened since, Johnston said.

He described the releases as "ongoing occasional seepage of contaminated groundwater" that appears to happen during rainy and wet conditions.

"This seepage has likely been occurring unnoticed by anyone for years, especially when the water table is high, and so it's impossible to know how much contaminated water may have seeped into the creek over time," Johnston said in an email.

EGLE doesn't know the source of the calcium hydroxide, but Johnston said it is "highly unlikely to be naturally occurring."

EGLE oversees the environmental cleanup of the 76-acre northern portion of the former McLouth Steel site. The owner has agreed to control dust from the site, investigate groundwater contamination and evaluate options to eliminate flow from the site to the Trenton Channel.

Although there is construction underway at that railroad crossing, EGLE inspectors do not believe it is causing the calcium hydroxide to rise to the surface. EGLE notified the railroad that it must submit a work plan by Friday that lays out how it will address the problem and prevent discharge into the creek. It was submitted Thursday night.

Groundwater on the northwest portion of the railroad's property is suspected to be a result of historically buried calcium hydroxide waste, the company's work plan states. The railroad is holding soils excavated during construction on the property and surface water in a tank; the water will be analyzed and disposed of offsite.

The surface water has not reached the road right-of-way or storm drain, the company said in its work plan. The company will bore into the soil to collect surface water and groundwater samples and will install groundwater monitoring wells.

"We interacted with EGLE regarding this groundwater and implemented EGLE's suggested remediation plan as a precaution," Crown spokesperson Esther Jentzen said in a statement. "This involved fencing off the area, containerizing the water and shipping it offsite for proper disposal, and continued monitoring. We are regularly interacting with EGLE on this issue and this situation is being handled to its satisfaction."

EPA responded in 2009

McLouth Steel operated from 1948 until 1996, when the company filed for bankruptcy and was sold to Detroit Steel Company. The state stepped in with hazardous waste enforcement action in 1999. The next year, Detroit Steel sold 76 acres at the north end of the site to Manuel "Matty" Moroun, who transferred the title through Crown Enterprises LLC to the Riverview-Trenton Railroad, according to the site histories written by state environmental department and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

The EPA, which co-manages the site with EGLE, responded to a calcium hydroxide pollution issue between 2009 and 2011.

A substance with high pH leached into Monguagon Creek, causing "imminent threat to public health and the environment," according to an EPA pollution report written at the time. Substances that alkaline can cause severe chemical burns.

"The source of the high pH leachate is potentially associated with buried slag material including calcium oxide which forms calcium hydroxide when in contact with water," the EPA spokesperson said in an email.

In the pollution report, the EPA said the railroad company did not install barriers to prevent the substance from reaching the environment, did not comply with the EPA and did not negotiate a consent order with the EPA. The agency placed the railroad company under an administrative consent order in 2010; the company said it would not comply.

The EPA then led a $2 million cleanup project at the site.

Wayne County foreclosed on the most of the southern 197 acres of the former McLouth site in 2017, according to the EPA's site history. The county then entered into a purchase agreement with Crown Enterprises LLC and its affiliate, MSC. The southern portion of the property was added to the Superfund program in 2019, where it remains under EPA oversight.

A $20 million cleanup project was completed in 2021, which included the removal of material that contained asbestos and PCBs, demolishing 45 structures, investigating PCB releases and assessing options for stormwater management.

The state environmental department and the EPA split enforcement of the former McLouth site through a memorandum of understanding signed in 2018. EGLE oversees the northern 76-acre portion of the site, and the EPA manages the 197-acre portion to the south.

Crown's Jentzen said the company has made "significant investment and improvements to the Trenton riverfront property and has worked with the EPA and EGLE every step of the way."

"As part of this continued improvement, Crown is completing a rail crossing over Jefferson to reconnect the site to the existing railroad track in the area," she said.

Citizen found March release

A resident reported the March release near the railroad crossing to state officials in February. An EGLE inspector tested the milky substance and determined that it had a pH of 12.46, roughly that of bleach. The inspector determined the contaminated water seeps above ground and into the creek when the water table is high.

"This calcium hydroxide is mixing with groundwater so, especially when it rains, when the weather is wet, the water table rises and at a certain point that groundwater, calcium hydroxide mixture is seeping through the ground into the creek," EGLE's Johnston said.

Department staff observed about 10 dead or dying fish in the creek during a March inspection. No dead fish were seen in the Detroit River.

The state Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy installed cameras at the site on April 25 to take hourly images and look for signs of the calcium hydroxide solution. The department has not seen evidence of further contamination, but if it does, it will notify the state Department of Health and Human Services, which may issue a no-contact order for the creek.

Kyle de Beausset, a trustee in Grosse Ile Township across the Trenton Channel from the McLouth site, said he is disheartened by EGLE's response to the calcium hydroxide release. He is surprised the agency hasn't announced anything to nearby residents and is afraid it isn't monitoring the site carefully enough to keep people safe.

"There's possibly a health threat there," de Beausset said. "I don't know how significant, but I would want to know if I were in the public. (There is) no real timeline for when or if any information will be released."

de Beausset said a resident reported seeing another release with a similar milky appearance on June 16.

Johnston said the department ordered the railroad company to fence off the area to prevent people from coming into contact with the material after the June 16 report. The substance does not appear to be migrating into a waterway, he said.

de Beausset also is concerned about EGLE's approval of a construction permit for the railroad company on Nov. 22 that allowed it to replace a stormwater outfall as part of a project to build a railroad crossing on Jefferson Avenue. The permit requires the company to ensure no contaminants enter the water.

EGLE spokesman Johnston said the calcium hydroxide does not appear to be associated with the construction.

"As best as we can determine, this is material that's underground; it's coming into contact with groundwater and seeping from there," Johnston said. "That was happening before this construction project. It does not appear to be exacerbated by the construction. It just became more visible, and we had an opportunity to test it because of what was exposed at the surface."

ckthompson@detroitnews.com