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Illegal Dump
Prior to Cleanup

Community
Benefits

Cleanup Objectives: Remediate and restore a 9.8-acre site containing a 3.6-acre former landfill; 5,000 cubic yards of illegally dumped debris; and soil and surface water contaminated with volatile organic compounds, metals, and pesticides/herbicides

Green Remediation Strategy: Used a range of BMPs for waste management, surface water treatment, soil and ecological restoration, and renewable energy

• Took advantage of a partnership involving land donation from the private owner to a local nonprofit group, Rhizome Collective, Inc.
• Secured a $200,000 brownfields cleanup grant from the U.S. EPA in 2004 to assess, remediate, and enhance the site for community use
• Salvaged wood scraps and concrete for erosion control
• Chipped or shredded wood to create mulch for recreational trails
• Recycled 31.6 tons of metal
• Salvaged concrete for later use as fill for building infrastructure
• Powered equipment through use of biofuel generators and photovoltaic panels, due to lack of electricity
• Extracted 680 tires through use of vegetable-oil powered tractor
• Inoculated chainsaws with fungi spore-laden oil to aid in degradation of residual contaminants
• Constructed floating islands(of recovered soda bottles) to create habitat for life forms capable of bioremediating residual toxins in onsite retention pond
• Planted native grasses, wildflowers, and trees

Results:

• Avoided installation of utility lines for power during site cleanup
• Avoided air emissions during cleanup through use of renewable energy and clean fuel
• Reduced contaminant concentrations in land surface features through minimally invasive biodegradation techniques
• Converted surface water to beneficial use as aquatic habitat
• Found onsite beneficial use of vegetative and man-made waste materials
• Restored the property within a single year, after work commenced in January 2005
• Formed close, long-term working relationships with the City of Austin Brownfields redevelopment Office and Solid Waste Services, as well as many weekend volunteers
• Complemented the adjacent 363-acre Roy G. Guerrero Colorado River Park

Property End Use: Environmental education park

Point of Contact: Amber Perry, U.S. EPA Region 6

Update: February 2008

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