Developing a Priority List - Essay Example

The residential area is Ohio County and the nearby sites listed in the National Priorities List (NPL) are Air force Plant 85, Allied Chemical & Ironton Coke. In the list, Air force Plant 85 appears as number 1 with a site identity number by EPA being OH1170090004, Allied Chemical & Ironton Coke appears as number 2 with a site identity number by EPA being OH043730217, and Bowers Landfill listed as number 8 with a site identity number by EPA being OHD980509616 (EPA, 2012; EPA, 2011; EPA, 2013). Hazardous chemicals listed in the inventory and associated with Allied Chemicals & Ironton Coke include benzene, ammonia, cyanide, naphthalene Polynuclear Aromatics Hydrocarbons (PAHs), and phenolics (EPA, 2011). The groundwater within the site contains all the listed chemicals, which are dangerous to human health.

In the inventory list, Air Force Plant 85 characterizes by chemicals that include chlorinated solvents, trichloroethylene, PCBs, and hydrocarbons. The site also suffers from contamination with dangerous metals like mercury, chromium, and cadmium (EPA, 2012). The groundwater under the site has contaminations of metals and chemicals and is unhealthy for human consumption. The inventory also features the Bowels Landfill site as contaminated with contaminants such as barium, manganese, pesticides, volatile organic chemicals (VOCs), phthalates, lead, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and arsenic, which have also infiltrated into the groundwater and made the water unsafe for human consumption (EPA, 2013).